NPPC VP Testifies Before House on CA Prop. 12

USAgNet - 07/24/2025

Pat Hord, Ohio pork producer and vice president of the National Pork Producers Council, and Holly Cook, NPPC economist, testified before the full House Agriculture Committee on the implications of California's Proposition 12 for farmers and food prices. On behalf of the industry, they called for Congress to support Committee Chairman Glenn "GT" Thompson's (R-PA) efforts to address this severe threat to the U.S. pork industry, including the spiderweb of state regulations it invites.

Hord shared his family farm's story with the Committee, saying "Despite producing Prop. 12-compliant pork, I am here to say Prop. 12, and an unmitigated regulatory patchwork, threatens our farm."

Prop. 12, a California ballot initiative, bans the sale of pork that does not comply with the state's prescriptive and arbitrary production standards. Though enacted in a single state, Prop. 12 has created sweeping consequences nationwide by fueling market volatility, imposing costly new mandates on producers, and paving the way for a patchwork of inconsistent state regulations. These disruptions have raised pork prices for consumers and continue to push small, multigenerational farms out of business.

Hord and Cook explained how widespread adoption of measures like Prop. 12 would lead to even more consumers paying higher prices for pork, a result already felt by Californians, who eat 13% of U.S. pork despite producing less than 1% of the U.S. pork supply. There, prices from bacon (+16%) to loins (+41%) increased significantly due to Prop. 12, per USDA.

"A patchwork of conflicting, Proposition 12-style regulations around the country would also lead to even more consolidation of the industry as pork producers are forced to constantly reconstruct their operations or close their doors," said Hord.

Beyond rising consumer prices and industry consolidation, Hord spoke to misconceptions that Prop. 12 enhances food safety (it does not) and animal welfare, citing American Veterinary Medical Association and American Association of Swine Veterinarians opposition to Prop. 12 and how those pen requirements can "unintentionally cause harm" to animal welfare.

Economist Cook discussed the significant financial impacts on producers converting to Prop. 12-compliant housing, as well as USDA research and recent scanner data confirming the impact on consumer costs.

"Proposition 12 has been called an "unfunded mandate," meaning voters approved the measure, but consumers had not demonstrated an ability or willingness to pay the premium required to consume the same volume of pork products," she shared.

A report by USDA economists showed that in the first eight months of implementation, prices for pork products covered under Prop. 12 increased by 20% on average as a result, with many jumping even higher, as noted above.

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