Factory Farms Under Fire in Massachusetts

by Martin Matheny · 2011-01-27 11:30:00 UTC
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Animal advocates in Massachusetts are taking steps to add their state to list of places where the worst kinds of factory farm cruelty are prohibited.

Two legislators have introduced the Massachusetts Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act, which would make gestation crates for pigs, battery cages for laying hens, and veal crates illegal. It's an important and necessary reform. More importantly, it's just common sense. Whether you're talking about gestation crates, veal crates, or battery cages, the common thread is cruelty. Most of these devices are cramped; the animals trapped inside them have no room to stretch their legs, turn around, or even lie down comfortably.

Battery cages, gestation crates and the like are not exactly a new issue in the fight for humane farming. Groups like Farm Sanctuary have been working on the issue for years, and a small number of states, like Florida, Michigan, California, and Massachusetts' next-door neighbor, Maine, have taken steps to stop cruel and inhumane confinement. Activists on the other side of the country, in Washington state, are gearing up for a ballot initiative targeting battery cages this year as well.

Within the Bay State, some communities have passed local laws encouraging residents not to buy veal or battery-raised eggs, and the city of Pittsfield even has its own local ban on battery cages and gestation and veal crates.

The Massachusetts bill, introduced by Rep. Jason Lewis and Sen. Robert Hedlund has drawn praise from some of the biggest animal protection groups out there. The Humane Society of the United States is behind it, as is Farm Sanctuary. And, Lewis and Hedlund's bill is bipartisan; Lewis is a Democrat, and Hedlund is a member of the Senate's Republican leadership. With high-profile organizations backing them, and the bipartisan nature of the bill, here's hoping Lewis and Hedlund have the political clout to pass it quickly.

You can still lend a hand, and your own political clout, by encouraging the members of the Massachusetts legislature to support the Massachusetts Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act. A ban on veal crates, battery cages, and gestation crates in Massachusetts would be another step toward ending abusive farm animal confinement across the country.

Photo credit: Svadilfari

Martin Matheny is a political consultant and animal welfare writer based in Athens, Georgia.

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