Editorial: No on Proposition 12

Proposition 12 is a ballot measure that would require calves, pigs and other livestock be kept in confinements large enough to allow the freedom of movement. The state legislative analyst has estimated the measure would cost millions of dollars annually to enforce.

The measure is opposed by both the National Pork Producers Council and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, albeit for different reasons. The meat industry opposes Proposition 12 on the grounds that increasing the size of livestock cages will increase the cost of basic foods. PETA opposes the proposition on the grounds that it does not do enough to ensure animal welfare. Specifically, the group has stated Proposition 12 would allow farms to keep egg-laying hens in cages until 2022, after which farms can still stick them in crowded sheds with only 1 square foot of space per hen.

This board takes both the meat industry and the animal welfare lobby at their respective words. By imposing tremendous costs on farmers and mandating the creation of massive regulatory policies, Proposition 12 would increase the cost of basic foods, burdening low-income Californians to an unprecedented degree. And if PETA is correct, these enormous costs will not appreciably improve the treatment of livestock in California factory farms.

As such, this board does not endorse Proposition 12 on the grounds that it would impose tremendous costs while reaping meager benefits.