A 45-day public comment period offered by California on the implementation of Proposition 12 ends July 12, 2021. The California Department of Food and Agriculture is proposing to adopt new Chapter 10 (commencing with section 1320) of Division 2 of Title 3 of the California Code of Regulations to implement Health and Safety Code sections 25990 through 25994, Farm Animal Cruelty, which mandates farm animal confinement standards for egg-laying hens, veal calves, and breeding pigs and the sale of shell eggs, liquid eggs, whole veal meat, and whole pork meat derived from these covered animals.

In 2018, California voters passed Prop 12 which phases out certain methods of farm animal confinement for covered animals raised in California and the products harvested from those animals, or immediate offspring of those animals in the case of breeding pigs, if sold within California for human consumption.

The proposed regulations establish a regulatory framework of registration, certification, conveyance inspection, and labeling and marking requirements for the sale of shell eggs, liquid eggs, whole veal meat, and whole pork meat in California.

Any person interested may present statements or arguments in writing relevant to the action proposed by July 12, 2021 to Dr. Elizabeth Cox, program manager of California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Animal Care Program.

Prop 12 is set to be implemented January 1, 2022.