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In 2018, California voters were dupped by animal rights activists into passing Proposition 12, which required farmers who raise laying hens to allow them to "roam freely"; it went into force in 2022. The theory was that this would be more humane and "free them from confinement." Several other states also adopted this new idea so they could sell their products in California. It freed the chickens, but what has been the result?
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) pushed this idea with the theory that free range chickens would lead happy and enjoyable lives if they weren't caged. For farmers who keep thousands of chickens to produce the eggs you eat every day, this meant a huge investment to rid their farms of henhouses with separate cages and convert the living areas for the hens.
Of course, this meant that any disease could be easily transmitted between large groups of birds.
Bird flu is a viral infection that spreads in flocks of birds. In August of 2024 The Hill reported that more than 100 million chickens and turkeys had been "culled" (killed) resulting from exposure to the bird flu.
Wouldn't it be "more ethical" to keep the hens in cages to prevent exposure to bird flu thus facing an early death?
Each chicken lays an egg every day, and it takes 18 weeks before they start producing eggs. Do the math -- that's a lot of lost eggs. Healthy chickens can live for 10 years, but if flocks are "culled" to prevent the spread of the bird flu, it would take more than four months to replenish the brood and once again begin producing eggs.
When the demand for eggs remains the same and supplies are reduced by millions of eggs while farmers replenish the brood, the price will naturally go up; it's called supply and demand.
The Centers for Disease Control says, "Cooking poultry, eggs, and beef to the appropriate internal temperature kills bacteria and viruses, including avian influenza A viruses. And there is no evidence that anyone in the United States has gotten infected with avian influenza A viruses after eating properly handled and cooked poultry products."
So, while according to the CDC there is no clear danger to humans when proper food safety protocols are followed, the government solution was to kill entire flocks of hens and continue to support cage-free policies.
So, why did egg prices go up? Because California voters, most of whom live in cities, were convinced through clever and often misleading advertising to require chickens to be "set free" where they were easily exposed to the bird flu and killed, thus reducing the egg supply and causing price increases. Other states followed because California refused to allow poultry products into the state unless they came from cage-free farms.
This is what happens when we allow activist groups like PETA to influence public policy and the government doesn't consider the actual risk to humans if they eat infected birds or their eggs.
The only remaining question is if, according to Newsweek, the average cost per dozen for eggs is $4, why do eggs in California cost twice as much?