Fifteen states have laws that ban the extreme confinement of farm animals in cages and crates. These laws have elevated the welfare of millions of animals, including egg-laying hens. However, the current bird flu outbreak and resulting mass culling of millions of hens has reduced the supply of eggs in many states. Some lawmakers are using this shortage to justify overturning confinement bans in an effort to increase supply by allowing eggs from cruel battery cage systems to be sold into the state.

Michigan, Arizona and Colorado have introduced bills repealing confinement bans, with Nevada being the first state to pass a rollback this year. These shortsighted proposals would harm animals and, ironically, bring back the mega-crowded conditions that fuel the spread of bird flu.

With the Farm Bill still stalled in Congress, industrial agribusinesses are turning their eyes to the states where they have historically been successful in capturing power and building policies that benefit the factory farm system.

This routinely takes the form of ag-gag and right-to-farm legislation, which we have seen pop up in multiple states this year. Legislators in South Dakota passed an ag-ag bill, and legislators in Michigan introduced a bill to eliminate local control of animal agriculture.

Another concerning trend is an attempt to limit transparency and access to information about factory farms, with various bills introduced in Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico and North Dakota.

In addition to causing immense animal suffering, factory farming does enormous environmental damage. Rather than change their ways, industrial agribusinesses often push state legislatures to roll back environmental regulations or not enforce existing regulations. Some states even go so far as prohibiting the enactment of environmental policies that are stronger than what is required under federal law.

Additionally, industrial agriculture continues to lobby for state funding to support the construction of methane digesters, also known as factory farm gas. Misleadingly sold as a climate-smart solution, factory farm gas actually incentivizes large factory farms that have huge negative environmental impacts. Iowa is championing a bill to ease permitting regulations on methane digesters, and similar legislation has been introduced in Maryland to include methane digesters in the state’s list of eligible renewable energy sources.

In 2023, Congress considered the Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression (EATS) Act, an awful bill that would have had devastating consequences. It aimed to repeal hundreds of state and local laws that protect farm animals, farm workers, consumers and the environment — just to increase profits for Big Ag. The EATS Act didn’t pass, but we anticipate it will be introduced again.