In today’s House Agriculture Committee hearing on California’s Proposition 12, agribusiness allies recycled false claims about food prices, farmer hardship, and regulatory chaos to justify rolling back the most significant farm animal welfare law in U.S. history.

Compassion in World Farming US (CIWF US) calls out the hearing for what it is: a coordinated campaign by corporate interests to override democratic decision-making and public concern for how animals are treated.
California’s Prop 12, upheld by the Supreme Court in 2023, reflects a clear mandate from voters (63% in favor) to end the cruel confinement of pigs, calves, and hens. But industry-backed witnesses and lawmakers attacked the law using misleading talking points. Among them:

Prop 12 “destroys interstate commerce” – producers can choose whether or not to sell into the California market, and according to the USDA, 27% already comply with Prop 12.
That it “raises food prices” – USDA data shows pork prices have remained stable since implementation.
That it’s “unscientific” or unreasonable - hundreds of major food companies have committed to transitioning to higher-welfare animal products, and scores of independent animal scientists support basic welfare improvements like giving mother pigs space to turn around.

“These tired arguments are nothing more than a smokescreen. For years, Big Industrial Ag has tried to gut basic protections under the guise of ‘commerce.’ What they really want is to keep raking in record profits, no matter the cost to animals, farmers, or democracy itself,” said Matthew Dominguez, U.S. Director at Compassion in World Farming. “Today’s hearing wasn’t about states' rights or food safety—it was a small group of lawmakers pushing a pro-factory farm agenda in Congress, telling voters and states to step aside so Big Industrial Ag can write all the rules.”

“The EATS Act and bills like it aren’t about protecting farmers. They’re about protecting the industries’ status quo of locking animals in tiny cages,” says Julia Johnson, Head of Corporate and Public Policy at CIWF US. “Stripping states of the ability to set fair standards tilts the market in favor of corporate conglomerates. If Congress passes this provision in the Farm Bill, we are leaving small, values-driven producers behind in their race to the bottom.”

BACKGROUND:

Witnesses at today’s hearing include representatives of the National Pork Producers Council and American Farm Bureau Federation, groups that have lobbied aggressively to pass the EATS Act and overturn Prop 12. Their testimony exaggerates costs, misrepresent economic impacts, and paint voters as uninformed. The truth is that Prop 12 has helped many small farmers gain access to new market opportunities and value-driven consumers.

CIWF US urges Congress to reject the EATS Act and EATS-like language in the Farm Bill. Congress should preserve states’ rights to enact commonsense protections for animals, farmers, and consumers. Undermining Prop 12 through backdoor legislation not only defies the will of voters—it sets a new level of precedent for corporate overreach in our democracy.

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Media Contact:
Alex Cragun, Head of Strategic Communications and Initiatives
Alex.cragun@ciwf.org
801-759-6455

CIWF Slams Industry Effort to Gut Animal Welfare in Prop 12 Hearing