A Missouri law defining meat as “derived from harvested production livestock or poultry” went into effect this fall. The law also creates fines and even jail time for producers who violate the act. Supporters of...

The US Department of Agriculture recently finalized a new waiver system whereby bird slaughter plants can apply to increase their line speed to 175 birds per minute. Before finalizing the waiver system, the USDA took...

Every year, millions of farm animals die as a result of natural disasters. Floods, extreme heat or cold, wildfires, and other weather events present grave risks to animals, especially those in confinement. This year alone...

In 2017, a barn fire struck Hi-Grade Egg Producers in North Manchester, Indiana. At least four poultry barns burned down, killing more than 1 million chickens in a matter of hours. The chickens, trapped in...

International transport of farm animals by sea vessel is a major animal welfare issue, particularly for long-distance journeys, such as those taken by cattle and sheep from Europe and Australia to the Middle East and...

The World Organisation for Animal Health (known by its French initials, “OIE”), at its annual meeting in Paris in May, approved a new chapter on the welfare of pigs for inclusion in the organization’s Terrestrial...

The North Carolina General Assembly gave final approval to a bill that restricts nuisance lawsuits against factory farms and other agricultural operations. The law is a reaction to several lawsuits won by plaintiffs who have...

The Council of Better Business Bureau’s National Advertising Division (NAD) has concluded that claims made by Perdue Farms in a national broadcast advertising campaign were misleading. NAD is a nonregulatory body that provides a mediation...

Every five years or so, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association releases a National Beef Quality Audit, conducted through the beef checkoff program (checkoff programs collect money from producers to fund promotional campaigns and research). The...

In March, the Law Library of Congress released an in-depth report on the legal status of religious slaughter in 21 European nations. The European Union’s Council Regulation 1099/2009 and the Council of Europe’s Convention for...