On 4 November, along with the vote for President of the USA, California voters will be asked to decide on Proposition 2, an animal rights ballot measure that would grant farm animals their ‘freedom’.
The battle over Proposition 2 is focused almost exclusively on the state’s henhouses, which opponents say will be hard hit by higher production costs if the measure passes. “This is a well-intended initiative for animals with some very negative unintended consequences for people,” said Julie Buckner, a spokeswoman for Californians for Safe Food, the leading anti-Proposition 2 group. “It’s going to wipe out the California egg farmers, and it’s going to raise the food costs for consumers. And this is at a time when our economy is hurting
Supporters of the proposition, the first of its kind in America, reject those arguments, casting the ballot measure as an act of kindness for animals whose bodies and byproducts usually end up on dining room tables. If the proposition passes, farmers will not be able to keep farm animals caged permanently.