32 Senate Democrats Urge Agriculture Committee to Reject Food Security and Farm Protection Act, Formerly the EATS Act

Led by Senator Adam Schiff, Letter Urges Protection of State Animal Welfare Laws and Highlights Bipartisan Opposition

WASHINGTON , DC, UNITED STATES, July 14, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy applauded 32 U.S. Senate Democrats after they sent a letter today to Senate Agriculture Committee leaders urging them to exclude the Food Security and Farm Protection Act (formerly the EATS Act) from the 2025 Farm Bill. The letter was led by Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) and included more than two-thirds of Senate Democrats as signers.

The letter calls on Senate Agriculture Chairman John Boozman and Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar to reject the Food Security and Farm Protection Act, which seeks to nullify state and local agriculture laws that differ from federal standards — including voter-approved measures like California’s Prop 12 and Massachusetts’ Question 3, which bar the sale of pork from pigs confined in gestation crates and eggs from laying hens jammed into battery cages.

“Pork industry’s lobbyists may want to make this about California, but the truth is that voters and lawmakers in multiple states have taken action to end extreme confinement — and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that these policies are constitutionally sound,” said Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. “China will be the biggest beneficiary if Congress passes the EATS Act because its U.S. proxy, Smithfield Foods, will be able to build more massive factory farming complexes on U.S. soil.”

EATS Would Roll Back Animal Welfare, States’ Rights

Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy — whose leader Wayne Pacelle was a key architect of the state laws restricting extreme confinement — criticized S. 1326 on multiple grounds:

• State laws upheld by conservative SCOTUS. The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in NPPC v. Ross upheld state authority to regulate agriculture within state borders. The Court again declined to revisit the issue in IPPA v. Bonta this year, affirming that state measures like Prop 12 are constitutionally sound.

• Foreign Interests Stand to Gain. The U.S. pork industry has significant foreign ownership — with China’s WH Group, parent company of Smithfield Foods, controlling more than a quarter of U.S. pork production. If Congress dismantles state animal welfare laws, it could pave the way for Chinese-style industrial pig “skyscrapers” in the U.S., where animal welfare standards are nonexistent.

• No Harm to Farmers or Prices. Contrary to pork industry claims, farmers have not been forced into costly retrofits due to Prop 12 or Question 3. Market access to California and Massachusetts has been voluntarily met by producers ready to serve those markets. Pork prices have remained stable nationwide, and California has had no pork shortages, with over 1,200 certified producers and distributors serving the state.

• The Pork Industry Is Alone. No other sector of American agriculture is calling for EATS-style legislation. Even the egg industry, which faced similar reforms, has adapted and opposes its commodity being included in the measure. This underscores that the pork industry’s push is ideological — not practical or market-driven.

• Risk of Consolidation. Passage of the EATS Act would accelerate consolidation in agriculture, turning independent producers into contract growers under foreign-controlled conglomerates. Thousands of U.S. farmers who invested in crate-free systems to meet market demand would be economically stranded if these state laws were nullified.

Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy will continue to advocate for keeping this federal overreach out of the Farm Bill and preserving the rights of voters and states to promote more humane, safe, and transparent food systems.

Wayne Pacelle
Animal Wellness Action
+1 443-865-3600
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