Egg producers in Arizona now have more time to convert to cage-free production. Following numerous submissions from the state’s producers, the Arizona Department of Agriculture recently approved a cage-free mandate, which grants producers an additional 19 months to convert.
All laying hens in the U.S. state of Arizona will now have to be cage free, and all eggs sold in the state must come from cage-free layers, by January 1, 2025.
Compliance dates for producers to make conversions are as follows:
From October 1, 2022, through December 31, 2024, all eggs sold in the state must come from laying hens housed according to the agricultural cooperative United Egg Producers' (UEP) Animal Husbandry Guidelines, but hens must have at least one square foot (0.09 square meters) of usable floor space.
By January 1, 2025, all layers and egg sold in Arizona must be 100% cage free.
An exemption has been granted for producers with under 20,000 hens, sparing small businesses from the financial and regulatory burdens of the change.
Additionally, specific certifications will guarantee that out-of-state producers do not have advantages or disadvantages compared to in-state producers.
The initial proposal
The Arizona Department of Agriculture’s initial proposal required all Arizona egg producers to convert to cage free by May 1, 2023. However, concerns about timing and supply were brought to lawmakers by multiple egg producers, one being Hickman’s Family Farms.
Hickman’s stated it would have to euthanize a portion of its flock to adhere to the previous 2023 deadline and avoid legal charges, which contradicts the animal welfare argument of converting to cage-free housing. Therefore, the original cage-free proposal was amended.
State mandates
Cage-free state mandates are becoming more common, especially since California’s Proposition 12 was voted in, and later implemented in January 2022.
At the 2022 Midwest Poultry Federation (MPF) Convention, Peter Ruddell, attorney for Honigman LLP, discussed why he believes Missouri may be the next U.S. state to have a cage-free law voted in.
After showing two maps depicting states that have the best chance for voters to change state laws and states with higher levels of egg production, he stated, “Missouri has a very liberal opportunity to go to the ballot for the citizens, and it’s one that the Humane Society (of the United States) has used repeatedly.”
“If I were looking at these two maps (and) comparing those two maps, I would look at Missouri as a potential target for the next wave of animal welfare legislation.”
