Every five years or so, the Congressional debate over United States’ Farm Bill offers the chance to see how our political leaders think about everything from subsidies for agribusiness to food aid for poor children. This year, it is also giving us a window into the thinking of Iowa Congressman Steve King, who wants to protect egg producers from animal-rights advocates—even if the egg producers don’t agree.
King’s Protect Interstate Commerce Act, added into the House version of the Farm Bill by the Committee on Agriculture, seeks to prevent states from putting restrictions on the products that can be sold within their borders based on the way they’re produced. In particular, King was apparently upset by a 2010 California law that demands all eggs sold in the state come from chickens kept in somewhat less restrictive conditions than the current industry standard.
The Daily Caller reports that King released a statement saying the amendment “will ensure that radical organizations like the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and PETA are prohibited from establishing a patchwork of restrictive state laws aimed at slowly suffocating production agriculture out of existence.”
King’s move is particularly notable for one group that isn’t opposing it: United Egg Producers, the largest lobby representing U.S. egg farmers. The organization has actually been working with HSUS on ways to phase in new industry standards including larger cages for laying hens.
Even if King’s amendment becomes law, it won’t affect California’s ban on certain egg farming practices within the state, but it will prevent the state from applying the same standards to eggs trucked in from elsewhere. It will also make it more difficult for any state to set standards for many other products, including pork and veal.
In any case, the impact of King’s amendment on the egg industry could be moot if a separate amendment proposed by Rep. Kurt Schrader of Oregon makes it into the final bill. Schrader is calling for a national version of California’s standards for egg production.
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