The U.S. Supreme Court has decided to hear the case against California’s Proposition 12 filed by the American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Pork Producers Council. California’s Proposition 12 prohibits the sale of pork from hogs born to sows– anywhere in the world – not raised according to the state’s highly prescriptive housing standards. Minnesota Pork CEO Dave Preisler says this is an important win for agriculture.
He says NPPC has waged a legal battle against the ballot initiative since it was approved in November 2018, arguing at the U.S. district and appellate court levels that Prop. 12 violates the Constitution’s Commerce Clause.
Preisler says NPPC and AFBF will file their initial brief in the coming weeks with the Supreme Court, which may not hand down a decision until the end of 2022.
The high court is taking up the case on appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which in July upheld a lower court ruling against the lawsuit.
