Latest news with #EggProductsInspectionActof1970
Miami Herald
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Trump administration sues California over egg prices
The U.S. Department of Justice last week filed a lawsuit against California claiming that animal welfare laws enacted by the state have pushed up egg prices across the country by "imposing unnecessary red tape" on their production and are unconstitutional. The Trump administration's suit says that California's regulations governing the treatment of egg-laying hens stopped farmers from using "a number of agricultural production methods which were in widespread use - and which helped keep eggs affordable." The Justice Department also claims in the suit that the laws should be set aside because the federal government regulates the egg industry through the federal Egg Products Inspection Act of 1970, which requires eggs and egg products to be "wholesome" and "properly labeled and packaged to protect the health and welfare of consumers." "[T]he Supremacy Clause [of the Constitution] does not permit California to inflate egg prices by imposing additional standards that regulate the quality of eggs, and the provisions at issue here are invalid," according to the suit. Filed on Wednesday in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the suit names the state as well as officials including Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta, both Democrats, as defendants. The suit targets a trio of California laws that contain provisions laying out how farmers must treat hens that produce eggs. They include two ballot measures, Proposition 2 and Proposition 12, as well as legislation approved in 2010 by former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican. Proposition 2, approved by voters in 2008, bans the confinement of egg-laying hens, veal calves and pregnant pigs "in a manner that does not allow them to turn around freely, lie down, stand up, and fully extend their limbs." Voters approved Proposition 12, which established minimum space requirements for those animals, in 2018. The 2010 law, which went into effect in 2015, prohibits the sale of eggs for human consumption produced by hens not raised in compliance with the standards contained in Proposition 2. In a statement issued on Thursday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins castigated California for causing "real harm to consumers under its cage-free egg commitments," which she said have hurt consumers by forcing them to pay more for eggs. "It is one thing if California passes laws that affects its own State, it is another when those laws affect other States in violation of the U.S. Constitution," Rollins said. The California attorney general's office pushed back on the lawsuit in a statement reported by The Associated Press. "Pointing fingers won't change the fact that it is the President's economic policies that have been destructive," the California Department of Justice said, according to the news service. "We'll see him in court." Newsom's press office also criticized the suit. "Trump's back to his favorite hobby: blaming California for literally everything," the governor's press office said in a post on X. Egg prices have declined in recent months after soaring earlier in 2025, although they have recently ticked back up, according to data released by the USDA on Friday. Prices for eggs declined by nearly 3% in May compared with the previous month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Still, egg prices were up more than 41% during May on a year-over-year basis, the agency said. Copyright 2025 Industry Dive. All rights reserved.
RTÉ News
10-07-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
US government sues California over egg prices
US president Donald Trump's administration has sued California over its regulation of eggs and chicken farms, saying that the state's anti-animal cruelty laws created "unnecessary red tape" that had raised egg prices throughout the US. The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles federal court, argues that the federal Egg Products Inspection Act of 1970 pre-empts state laws related to eggs. The federal law authorises the US Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services to regulate eggs in order to protect consumers' health and welfare, and it also requires "national uniformity" in egg safety standards, according to the Trump administration's lawsuit. The California attorney general's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Since the federal law's enactment, California has passed several laws to regulate eggs and chicken farms, including voter initiatives passed in 2008 and 2018 that prevent farmers from packing chickens together so tightly that a hen is unable to "lie down, stand up, fully extend its limbs, and turn around freely." Those state laws aimed to reduce both animal cruelty and the risk of foodborne illness, but the US government said in its lawsuit that only the federal government can regulate egg safety. California can regulate chicken farms within the state, but it cannot impose additional requirements on eggs from other states that are sold within California, according to the lawsuit. The California voter initiatives have survived previous challenges from farmers and other states. Six states – Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Alabama, Kentucky and Iowa – sued California over its egg regulations in 2014. The states who sued also argued that the federal law preempted California's laws, and they lost in both a federal district court and the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals. The US Supreme Court in 2023 preserved one of the California voter initiatives, which was challenged in a lawsuit by pig farmers. The pig farmers had argued that California's 2018 ballot measure, which creates minimum space requirements for pigs and cows as well as chickens, impermissibly regulated out-of-state farmers.
DW
10-07-2025
- Politics
- DW
US: Trump administration sues California over egg prices – DW – 07/10/2025
The US government sued California over its regulations on egg production which they say have led to high prices. The lawsuit says the measures affect egg farmers in other states as well. US President Donald Trump's administration sued California officials over higher egg prices on Wednesday in a Los Angeles federal court. "The State of California has contributed to the historic rise in egg prices by imposing unnecessary red tape on the production of eggs," the lawsuit said. Trump has repeatedly vowed to bring down egg prices, which have soared largely due to a major bird flu outbreak. The price increases have also stoked consumer anxieties around inflation and the rising cost of living. The State of California, Governor Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Rob Bonta, and other state officials were named in the lawsuit. The Trump administration said California's regulation of chicken and egg farms and its anti-animal cruelty laws were creating "unnecessary red tape" that has raised egg prices throughout the country. 'Americans across the country have suffered the consequences of liberal policies causing massive inflation for everyday items like eggs,' said Attorney General Pam Bondi in a statement. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The lawsuit said the federal Egg Products Inspection Act of 1970 allows the US Departments of Agriculture, Health and Human Services to regulate eggs in order to protect the health and welfare of consumers. It also requires "national uniformity" in egg safety standards. California has passed several laws including voter initiatives to regulate egg and chicken farms including ones that prevent farmers from packing chickens together tightly. The laws require hens to be kept in enclosures where they can "lie down, stand up, fully extend [their] limbs, and turn around freely." They were aimed to reduce the risk of foodborne disease and reduce animal cruelty. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The lawsuit says California can regulate farms in the state, but cannot impose these requirements on eggs from other states. In 2014, California was sued by the six states of Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Alabama, Kentucky and Iowa over its egg regulations, but the states lost the lawsuit. In 2023, pig farmers had sued one of the California voter initiatives from 2018 which created minimum space requirements for pigs, cows and chickens. They said it also regulated pig farmers from other states. The Supreme Court preserved the initiative. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
Time of India
10-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Is California's chicken law causing an egg crisis in US? Trump thinks so!
The Trump administration has initiated a lawsuit against California, challenging its regulations on egg and chicken farms. The lawsuit argues that California's anti-animal cruelty laws create unnecessary burdens and raise egg prices nationwide. California's egg laws have already withstood legal challenges. In 2014, six states—Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Alabama, Kentucky, and Iowa—sued California over similar concerns but lost in both district court and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit against the state of California , alleging that its strict animal welfare regulations are driving up egg prices nationwide and violating federal Wednesday in federal court in Los Angeles, the lawsuit contends that California's laws regulating how chickens are housed—particularly measures approved by voters in 2008 and 2018—conflict with the Egg Products Inspection Act of 1970. That federal law gives the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services the authority to oversee egg safety standards and requires uniformity across states, the suit lawsuit criticizes California's regulations as "unnecessary red tape" that restrict egg production and limit the supply of affordable eggs across the country. While California can impose rules within its own borders, the federal government says it cannot dictate how eggs are produced in other states if those eggs are sold in California Attorney General's office has not yet responded to the regulations mandate that hens must have enough space to lie down, stand up, extend their limbs, and turn around freely. Supporters say the rules help reduce animal cruelty and improve food safety, but federal officials argue that only Washington has the legal authority to set national egg egg laws have already withstood legal challenges. In 2014, six states—Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Alabama, Kentucky, and Iowa—sued California over similar concerns but lost in both district court and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld another California initiative that set space requirements for pigs, cows, and chickens, rejecting a challenge by pig farmers who claimed the law improperly affected out-of-state agriculture.
India Today
10-07-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Trump administration sues California over egg regulations, costs
President Donald Trump's administration on Wednesday sued California over its regulation of eggs and chicken farms, saying that the state's anti-animal cruelty laws created "unnecessary red tape" that had raised egg prices throughout the lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles federal court, argues that the federal Egg Products Inspection Act of 1970 pre-empts state laws related to eggs. The federal law authorizes the US Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services to regulate eggs in order to protect consumers' health and welfare, and it also requires "national uniformity" in egg safety standards, according to the Trump administration's California attorney general's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Since the federal law's enactment, California has passed several laws to regulate eggs and chicken farms, including voter initiatives passed in 2008 and 2018 that prevent farmers from packing chickens together so tightly that a hen is unable to "lie down, stand up, fully extend its limbs, and turn around freely."Those state laws aimed to reduce both animal cruelty and the risk of foodborne illness, but the US government said in its lawsuit that only the federal government can regulate egg can regulate chicken farms within the state, but it cannot impose additional requirements on eggs from other states that are sold within California, according to the California voter initiatives have survived previous challenges from farmers and other states – Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Alabama, Kentucky and Iowa – sued California over its egg regulations in 2014. The states who sued also argued that the federal law preempted California's laws, and they lost in both a federal district court and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of US Supreme Court in 2023 preserved one of the California voter initiatives, which was challenged in a lawsuit by pig farmers. The pig farmers had argued that California's 2018 ballot measure, which creates minimum space requirements for pigs and cows as well as chickens, impermissibly regulated out-of-state farmers.- EndsTune InTrending Reel
