On this day in vegan history · November 6, 2018
California Voters Ban the Cage
California voters didn't just ask factory farms for more room. They banned selling the eggs, pork, and veal of anyone who refused, then defended that law all the way to the Supreme Court.
The facts
- Election date
- November 6, 2018
- Vote result
- 62.65% Yes to 37.35% No (7,516,095 to 4,481,267 votes)
- Space rules
- Veal calves 43 sq ft by 2020; breeding pigs 24 sq ft and hens cage-free by 2022
- Supreme Court outcome
- Upheld 5-4 in National Pork Producers Council v. Ross, decided May 11, 2023
On November 6, 2018, California voters approved Proposition 12 by roughly 63 percent to 37 percent, setting minimum space requirements for egg-laying hens, breeding pigs, and veal calves and banning the in-state sale of eggs, pork, or veal from animals housed below those standards, no matter where the animals were raised. Hens had to be cage-free and pigs needed at least 24 square feet by 2022, with veal calves getting 43 square feet starting in 2020. The National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation sued, arguing California had no business dictating how farms in other states operate. The Supreme Court disagreed, upholding the law 5 to 4 in May 2023.
In their words
The day in the words of the people who were there. Every quote is verbatim, and every source links out so you can check it.
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Confining a baby veal calf, mother pig, or egg-laying hen inside a tiny cage is cruel.
Argument in Favor of Proposition 12, official California ballot pamphlet, 2018
Source: California Secretary of State, Official Voter Information Guide -
This outrageous sell-out to the egg industry betrays animals and voters. Californians already voted to ban cages by 2015.
Californians Against Cruelty, Cages, and Fraud, Argument Against Proposition 12, official ballot pamphlet, 2018
Source: California Secretary of State, Official Voter Information Guide
Why it still matters
Proposition 12 forced the country's biggest pork suppliers to change how they house animals just to keep selling into California, and the Supreme Court's 2023 ruling confirmed that a state's welfare standards can reach across its own borders. It's one of the few animal welfare measures to survive a full assault from an entire industry, all the way to the highest court.
Sources
This history is still being written.
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