Prop. 2: Good news for hens, challenge for farmers

California’s Prop. 2, which passed Nov. 4 with 63 percent of the vote, creates a new state statute prohibiting the confinement of farm animals – hens, calves, pigs – in a manner that does not allow them to turn around freely, lie down, stand up, and fully extend their limbs. The immediate effect on local farmers is unclear.
As to the impact on local farming, Sonoma farmer Arnold Riebli, whose Petaluma-based Sunrise Farms produces one million eggs a day, said, “I don’t know what the immediate impact is. The ballot language was so ambiguous. I don’t know and the industry doesn’t know what it can do and what it can’t do. Once I find out what I can do, depending on what we can do ­– if we can use some kind of production system, for example – we’ll probably give very strong consideration to retooling.”
Local backyard chicken owner and chickens’ rights advocate Doreen Proctor said she was glad the proposition passed. “It’s not as radical as some people think. It doesn’t say that the hens have to be out of cages – they just need more room to walk around and a place to lay their legs. It shouldn’t cause people to go out of business. It isn’t a bad thing. It’s a good thing.”
Riebli pondered what is best for his chickens and the possible changes he might have to make. “Is ‘cage free’ everything that it’s cracked up to be?  No. Is free range? No, it’s not. Are cage systems the answer? No, probably not. Is there a happy compromise we can reach somewhere in the middle? I believe that there is.”
As a lifelong farmer, he said the well being of his chickens has always been important. “How do I know my chickens are happy? When I walk into the barn, I can hear them. If they are singing, then they are OK. When my chickens don’t sing, or when the noise level is down, I got a problem.”
The proposition, which is the first to ask California voters to eliminate the practice of confining chickens in small cages, will go into effect in 2015. It stipulates that violators will face a fine of up to $1,000 or imprisonment in county jail for up to six months.