Missouri's attorney general has asked a federal court to strike down a California law regulating the living conditions of chickens, setting up a cross-country battle that pits new animal protections against the economic interests of Midwestern farmers.
The lawsuit by Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster takes aim at a California law set to take effect in 2015 that prohibits eggs from being sold there if they come from hens raised in cages that don't comply with California's new size and space requirements.
Koster said Tuesday that the California law infringes on the interstate commerce protections of the U.S. Constitution by effectively imposing new requirements on out-of-state farmers.
"If California legislators are permitted to mandate the size of chicken coops on Missouri farms, they may just as easily demand that Missouri soybeans be harvested by hand or that Missouri corn be transported by solar-powered trucks," Koster said.
Missouri's lawsuit was filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Fresno, Calif.
California Attorney General Kamala Harris declined to comment on the suit Tuesday.
But the Humane Society of the United States, which campaigned for the ballot initiative, said in a statement that states have the right to pass laws that protect the health and safety of their residents. Jennifer Fearing, the group's senior state director for California, said eggs produced from hens in "battery cages" have a higher risk of salmonella contamination.
"Attorney General Koster's lawsuit targeting California's laws, filed just to curry favor with big agribusiness, threatens state laws across the country dealing with agriculture and food safety," she said.