Hen welfare updates
From ANIMAL PEOPLE, September 2012:
Los Angeles U.S. District Court Judge John F. Walter on September 12, 2012 dismissed a case brought by the California Association of Egg Farmers which sought to overturn the hen housing requirements of Proposition Two, passed by voters in November 2008, as unconstitutionally vague. The focal question, Walter found, was whether Proposition Two required California egg farms to be cage-free. “There is nothing in the language of Proposition Two that requires California egg farms to be cage-free,” Walter concluded. “The statute is clear that, provided the cage does not prevent the egg-laying hen from lying down, standing up, fully extending her limbs and wings without touching the side of the cage or other egg-laying hens, or turning in a complete circle without any impediment and without touching the side of the cage, the use of such a cage would not violate Proposition Two.” Walter added that the answer to the question of how much space this actually requires “is certainly not a mystery and is capable of easy determination by egg farmers.” Read more