Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Kudos to King (R-Iowa) for standing up to Ca's BS egg laws

King got a voice vote to add an amendment to the farm bill. Basically, it prevents too much regulation in egg production. Of course, Feinstein and the animal rights groups are pissed. She's already trying to write a new law.

Egg amendment in 2012 farm bill

By a party line vote, the Senate might prevail on the re-write.
I'm sure federal control over "hen housing" will be a new part of HUD.

It's the rise in cost of eggs that has me worried. Prices could go up 75 to 100%. And the .gov will foot a lot of this bill with our tax money. Every welfare program includes food stamps for stuff like eggs.

Such laws are unnecessary. Public awareness regarding battery produced eggs was already on its way to eliminating the practice. Much better to leave it to the free market.

This is reminiscent of the gradual improvement in milk production safety in the early Twentieth Century. Public awareness of the problems with urban dairies had resulted in the formation of privately operated "seal of approval" organizations that would only certify dairies that submitted to and passed yearly inspections by them, and folks started demanding the certification of their milk. This was really starting to improve milk quality and safety when politicians decided they needed some of the limelight for themselves and began pushing for legislation requiring that all milk be boiled before it's sold, which is how we got to where we are today where if a dairy's customers prefer fresh milk, produced by a meticulously clean process, rather than boiled, the Feds send in a SWAT team to shut it down.

The best milk in the world, is the kind you have to shake before pouring...

I'm sure Peter DeCoster is one of King's biggest donors. Good guy and all...

The only kind I keep in my fridge.

That's an easy problem to fix get some chickens.

May be easy for some of us. But a lot of people live where zoning laws prohibit keeping chickens.

And even if you do have chickens, you'll pay for this. Your taxes will go to higher costs of welfare and subsidies to egg producers when it results in fewer eggs being sold.

I have 8 hens. I love not having to buy eggs.

But I don't want an "egg" tax either.

I've got you beat by one. I've got nine free ranging hens on the back half acre.

I also love the eggs.

I am NOT for the government mandating chicken cage size but does anyone realize what the standards are now and what the bill was trying to increase the size to?



144 square inches, that is one square foot. Hell of a way to treat any animal and that was the new standard. I cannot imagine a chicken living out it's life in 48 square inches.

I believe some day we will have to stand before God and answer for the way some people treat their animals.

I agree with you completely. Cruelty to animals is pretty widespread in modern agriculture, and we have an obligation to do what we can to stop it, but usually government action has more down side than up, once the unintended consequences are factored in. It should be done by private pressure and free market choice.

Obviously free market choice isn't working in the real world

Increasingly, it is. More people are making the choice not to support battery egg production every year.

Since most folks here believe that the general public is clueless about where the food comes from and how it is produced - I'm amazed that you buy into this market driven method. Unless, of course, you are an acolyte of Michael Moore types.

Actually, the part of the market that is working really well is the "cut costs" part. And squeezing birds is one way to dramatically cut costs.

Be sure to thank DeCoster too. He'd like you.

You got money in battery egg production?

You aren't too good at connecting dots are you..

I like to believe I am, but feel free to correct my errors where necessary.

Better get out your wrenches and fix that one then.