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Cage Free? Mass. Voters To Vote On Question 3

chickens

UPDATE, 12:36 am: Massachusetts voters answered "yes" to Question 3, with an overwhelming majority of 78 percent with 78 percent of poll stations reporting. Gov. Charlie Baker voted for the measure, saying, "While I worry a little bit about what that might mean to the cost of eggs for people here in the commonwealth, I am quite sympathetic to the perspective that is being offered by the Yes on Question 3 people," according to Politico Massachusetts.

Original Post:Â

Massachusetts residents are set to vote next week on Question 3, which prohibits the sale of foods from animals raised in small cages by Jan. 1, 2022.

Large-scale farms often raise animals in confinements in which they are unable to move before they're slaughtered. The Question 3 referendum says animal products sold in Massachusetts can still be raised in confinements, but that those confinements must be large enough for an animal to stand, turn around, or spread its wings (in the case of hens).

The measure has garnered the support of very high-profile organizations, including the Humane Society, the Massachusetts Society for the Protection of Animals, and The Boston Globe.

Of chief concern among opponents is the potential for the rising cost of food. Groups like Citizens Against Food Injustice say the cost of Question 3 is too high for consumers and will disproportionately affect low-income communities. A Boston Globe analysis shows Question 3 will cost consumers, but only between 1 and 5 cents more per egg.

Curiously, there's been almost no organized opposition to the ballot question, and that has some worried that the referendum is unlikely to pass, or will actually benefit factory farms in the long run, by increasing the price of food.

Notably absent from the debate is Massachusetts farmers, though that's likely because the majority of animal products sold there come from other states.

History is on the side of Question 3. Voters have never voted against similar farm animal welfare measures. California passed an almost identical measure - Prop 2 - in 2008 with nearly two-thirds of the state vote.

Question 3 is the only animal welfare referendum this year in the U.S.

This story will be updated.

Read More:



  • The Fight for Cage Free Eggs (The Atlantic)
  • Keeping Eggs Affordable: The Case Against Massachusetts Ballot Question 3 (WBUR)
  • Question 3 opponents lack financial backing in fight over farm animal confinement (Politico)


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