California egg-farm law prompts alliance of farmers and Humane Society for national cage standard

A California proposition that voters passed easily into law in 2008 made chicken farmers give their layers enough room to stand and spread their wings. The move, first fought by chicken farmers, is now being embraced by some who say their chickens are happier with the changes. The solution, writes Stuart Pfeifer of the Los Angeles Times, may be going national. "In a rare alliance, The Humane Society (of the United States) and egg ranchers have joined forces to lobby for federal legislation that would set national standards for egg ranches similar to those" in California, notes Pfeifer. (Photo of egg farmer Paul Iniguez by Tomas Ovalle)

Chad Gregory, senior vice president of the United Egg Producers, a trade organization that represents most of the nation's egg farmers, called it "a major wake-up call to the entire U.S. egg industry." He said that his organization believes the support of the Humane Society is "crucial." The law would, if passed, nearly double the amount of space usually afforded hens. It is common in some states, the story states, for hens "to be housed in less than 70 square inches -- smaller than a sheet of printer paper."

Not everyone is happy. Some animal-rights groups believe that a federal standard would be weaker than a state-by-state approach. Others believe that approach would take too long. Meanwhile, a lawsuit to invalidate the California law has already been filed in Riverside County, though the law doesn't take effect until 2015. (Read more)