Farmscape for October 1, 2021

The Assistant Vice President and General Counsel with National Pork Producers Council warns the implications for consumers in California are likely to be dramatic if Proposition 12 comes into effect as scheduled January 1st.
The National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to consider the constitutionality of California’s Proposition 12, due to take effect January 1, which would ban the sale of pork from hogs that don’t meet that state's production standards.
Michael Formica, the Assistant Vice President and General Counsel with National Pork Producers Council, says, while California has a major agricultural presence, producing lots of fruits and vegetables, beef, dairy and poultry there is no hog production in that state.

Clip-Michael Formica-National Pork Producers Council:
California is a massive massive consumer market for us.
We think about 15 percent of total pork consumption in the U.S. happens in California and what the animal rights activists managed to do with this ballot initiative was to restrict the sale of pork, completely outlaw it starting this January, if it wasn't produced in the way that they dictated.
The implications for consumers in California are going to be pretty dramatic.
We don't quite know what's going to happen in the marketplace but all signs are pointing to some pretty significant disruptions.
Rabobank is estimating that there might be significant shortages of basic pork products because there just simply isn't enough production now to fill those demands.

Formica suggests, in the event Proposition 12 moves forward, all consumers will end up having to pay a premium on the cuts of pork they buy or consumers in California will have to cover the entire premium or farmers will have to absorb the higher production costs.
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Bruce Cochrane.

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