[Animals] Supreme Court battle over 'cruelty' to pregnant pigs could affect pork prices, animal care

[FazzNoth]

A battle over bacon is headed to the U.S. Supreme Court with major stakes for farmers, pregnant pigs and the prices Americans pay at the grocery store.

The nation's $20-billion pork industry is asking the justices to strike down California's Proposition 12, which would ban the sale of all pork from mother pigs housed in cages or crowded group pens with less than 24-square-feet each -- the amount of room needed for an animal to turn around.

 

Proposition 12 was approved four years ago, though it never took effect and is now on hold pending judicial review. Opponents call the rules overly restrictive on their businesses -- with ramifications beyond one state. California officials note that voters backed the changes by 63% in 2018 and should, they say, have the power to regulate their food as they see fit.

Third-generation Minnesota pork farmer Mike Boerboom, who opposes the law and raises more than 400,000 pigs a year, has his own concerns. "When you need to make changes just to comply with the California market, I'm very worried about what our long-term success would be," he told ABC News.

Most American pork is produced in facilities like Boerboom's that do not meet Prop 12 standards, according to the National Pork Producers Council. The typical farm affords 16-18 square-feet per pig.

"It's maximizing profits over welfare and over human health. It's about confining as many animals as you can and churning out as much product as you can," said Kitty Block, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the U.S., which has led a defense of California's law.

"In addition to the extreme cruelty, it's a human health problem," Block said. "When you confine animals in these terrible conditions, it is a breeding ground for viruses."

Prop 12 would have the biggest impact in other states: California consumes 13% of U.S. pork, the largest market in the country, but produces just 1%, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Farmers in heavy pork-producing states like Iowa, Minnesota and North Carolina say it will cost billions of dollars to retool their operations to comply with California's law, resulting in less efficient and environmentally sustainable production of one of the most po[CENSORED]r meats in America.

"We've been raising pigs in confinement for 40 years," said Boerboom, whose 4,000 sows deliver 100,000 baby pigs per year -- enough to feed nearly half a million people.

More Info: https://www.yahoo.com/video/supreme-court-case-weighs-treatment-192600895.html