Pork industry warns Prop 12 and patchwork rules raise costs, push consolidation
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Summary
The National Pork Producers Council told the House subcommittee that California's Proposition 12 and similar state-level rules raise operating costs, create regulatory uncertainty and favor larger producers. The council asked Congress to include a federal fix in the farm bill and urged continued export promotion.
Lori Stevermer, a third-generation pork producer from eastern Minnesota and president of the National Pork Producers Council, told the subcommittee that California’s Proposition 12 has increased operating costs and “caused business uncertainty” for U.S. pork producers.
Why it matters: Stevermer said the law’s production requirements reach beyond California and “defy common sense,” creating a regulatory patchwork that, she argued, will favor large producers able to absorb compliance costs and push small and medium family farms out of the market.
Stevermer listed three farm bill priorities for pork producers: an immediate fix to the effects of Proposition 12, stronger funding for foreign animal disease prevention and detection (the witnesses repeatedly referred to this as the three-legged stool of animal health), and protections for market reporting and competition tools. On trade she told the committee that “international trade provides us with $62.66 dollars per pig marketed.”
Members and witnesses said the Farm Food and National Security Act of 2024 — which the committee passed out of committee last year — included language intended to address Proposition 12. When asked whether the industry supported the committee’s fix, Stevermer said, “We do support that.”
Stevermer also pressed for expanded H-2A access for year-round workers and asked Congress to withdraw and defund the proposed Packers and Stockyards rule, saying producers need certainty in market reporting, labor and competition policies.
Context: Multiple members expressed concern about state-by-state standards that effectively regulate production in other states. Witnesses said patchwork state rules raise consumer prices in regulated states and add compliance burdens for producers nationwide.
What’s next: Pork industry witnesses urged inclusion of a Prop 12 fix and strong animal-health investments in a five-year farm bill so producers can plan investment and operations with greater certainty.