Egg Industry - December 2012 - 8
Hen welfare agreement still not supported by some egg producers Almost 18 months after the agreement between the United Egg Producers and the Humane Society of the United States was signed, some egg producers are hoping the legislation doesn't make it through Congress. By Terrence O'Keefe assage of H.R. 3798, the hen welfare agreement legislation, continued to be a hot topic of conversation at the United Egg Producers annual meeting held recently in San Diego. United Egg Producers staff, consultants and many board members and egg producer members pledged support for efforts to pass H.R. 3798 at the meeting, but support among egg producers is not universal. Amon Baer is an egg producer from Lake Park, Minn., who is a principal P member, but has also been a de facto spokesperson for egg producers who are not supportive of passage of H.R. 3798. In July of this year, he testified before sector and his faith in free markets. He said that the ballot initiatives that have passed in California, Michigan and Ohio and that were pending in Wash- Read more about H.R. 3798: www.WATTAgNet.com/153683.html the Senate agriculture committee and presented reasons why he and some other small to mid-sized egg producers are against passage of H.R. 3798. ington and Oregon, prior to the signing of the United Egg Producers and the Humane Society of the United States agreement, would not impact all U.S. Some small to medium-size egg producers believe that the bird density requirements of the hen welfare agreement that are based on cage age could put some producers out of business. in both Mendelson Egg Company and Baer Brothers Inc. The four Baer brothers each have their own egg farms, and these family run farms have a total of 1.4 million hens. Amon Baer is a board 10 r EggIndustry Three months later, Baer is still presenting the opposition view regarding H.R. 3798. His first objection to H.R. 3798 stems from his belief in limited government intervention in the private r December 2012 r www.WATTAgNet.com egg producers, so federal legislation was not required to address the hen housing issue. The marketplace would determine how much consumers are willing to pay for eggs and how these
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