2018 California Proposition 12

Proposition 12

Farm Animal Minimum Space
Results
Choice
Votes %
Yes 7,516,095 62.65%
No 4,481,267 37.35%
Valid votes 11,997,362 100.00%
Invalid or blank votes 0 0.00%
Total votes 11,997,362 100.00%
Registered voters/turnout 19,696,371 60.91%

Source: California Secretary of State[1]

Proposition 12 ("Prop 12") was a California ballot proposition in that state's general election on November 6, 2018. The measure was self-titled the Prevention of Cruelty to Farm Animals Act.[2] The measure passed, by a vote of about 63% Yes to 37% No.[3]

The proposition establishes new minimum requirements on farmers to provide more space for egg-laying hens, breeding pigs, and calves raised for veal. California businesses will be banned from selling eggs or uncooked pork or veal that came from animals housed in ways that did not meet these requirements.[4]

The ballot measure aimed to build upon and strengthen the requirements of a previous ballot measure, the 2008 California Proposition 2, which prohibited battery cages and gestation crates for animals in California, and required that pigs, hens, and calves be able to spread their wings or limbs and turn around. The California legislature in 2010 passed AB 1437, which required all shell eggs sold in the state to meet the same requirements, including those produced elsewhere. Proposition 12 closed loopholes in these laws by requiring the same for all eggs sold in the state, regardless of the form it was sold in (i.e. both shell eggs and liquid eggs), and the state where it was produced.[5] However, not all pork has to comply with the law: only whole uncooked pork cuts must comply, while other pork products, such as ground pork, do not. This means that about 42% of the state's pork market is exempt from the law's requirements. [6]

  1. ^ "Statement of Vote: 2008 General Election" (PDF). California Secretary of State. December 13, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 6, 2013. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
  2. ^ "vig.cdn.sos.ca.gov/2018/general/pdf/topl.pdf#prop12" (PDF). vig.cdn.sos.ca.gov. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  3. ^ "Propositions & Ballot Measures: 2018 California Midterm Election Results". sacramento.cbslocal.com.
  4. ^ "Proposition 12 | Official Voter Information Guide | California Secretary of State". voterguide.sos.ca.gov. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  5. ^ Torrella, Kenny (August 10, 2021). "The fight over cage-free eggs and bacon in California, explained". Vox. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  6. ^ Marceau, Justin (May 12, 2023). "The Supreme Court's ruling on Prop 12 is a win against factory farming. But the pigs' lives will still suck". Vox. Retrieved May 14, 2023.