Bacon may disappear in California as pig rules take effect
At the beginning of next year, California will begin enforcing an animal welfare proposition approved overwhelmingly by voters in 2018 that requires more space for breeding pigs, egg-laying chickens and veal calves. National veal and egg producers are optimistic they can meet the new standards, but only 4% of hog operations now comply with the new rules. Unless the courts intervene or the state temporarily allows non-compliant meat to be sold in the state, California will lose almost all of its pork supply, much of which comes from Iowa, and pork producers will face higher costs to regain a key market.
Bacon will not disappear from the plates of wealthy Californians, it will be expensive, “California compliant” bacon that comes with a surcharge making it $19/lbs.
Working and middle-class people won’t have bacon except for special occasions.
One of the things I’m curious about is how the Mexican community feels about this, given how much pork is part of their culture. I expect that in those communities every family will have a pig in the back yard and they will just slaughter their own. The animal waste runoff will be mixed with the vagrant shit in the streets and nobody will notice the difference.
The California elite are doing everything possible to turn into a medieval society where the peasantry has nothing.
Just wait until this goes national and bacon gets priced like lobster and an affordable breakfast is soy paste and bugs.
At some point companies should just stop coddling CA and quit supplying CA-specific products. That goes for pork and it goes for lightbulbs (the CA-proprietary weirdo lightbulb sockets never seen anywhere else in recorded history).
The law passed by a majority of voters… and I’m willing to bet that those majorities all live in the urban and suburban counties , not the exurban or rural counties.
This country doesn’t have “red” and “blue” states. It doesn’t have “liberal” and “progressive” parties. It doesn’t even have class divisions. It has people who know where food comes from and people who don’t.
I’m willing to bet that if I did a door-to-door survey here in Portland, at least 50% of my neighbors couldn’t point to the part of a photograph of a live chicken that becomes Buffalo Wings.
Your point about the importance of pork in Mexican cuisine is a good one. I’m willing to bet we’ll see a huge surge in smuggled agricultural goods in Southern California. Chicharróns are probably a lot easier to smuggle through the Tijuana-San Diego than heroin…
The border crossing guards will have to train pig-smelling dogs…..
Its just like the whining in Connecticut about trucks. Morons have zero idea how the real world works. We the People HAVE to start saying NO
Look on the bright side of things. If more people are raising back yard pigs, then hiding bodies is going to get a little easier.
The gangster boss in the movie “snatch” bragged about how his pig farm was great at getting rid of bodies. “They eat the bones and all!”
The times are getting closer, where heads will be displayed on posts to warn the idiots away.
Mmmm…bacon.
Another reason to doubt that we are the Chosen People. 8>)
“Bacon may disappear in California…”
At this juncture i probably would not mind if Commiefohrnia disappeared as well. SMH
This kind of reminds me of when San Francisco tried to ban foie gras.
Black market anyone? 🤷🏻♂️
Being from Iowa originally, and grandson of a pig farmer…
There’s a currently unmet demand for pork in China that may exceed the market lost in California.
California just made it easier to export than to comply with their laws.