The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) today launched an ad campaign calling for a federal solution to California’s Proposition 12, a state law that poses an existential threat to the entire U.S. pork industry. The dynamic campaign, which will run across digital and social media channels, depicts the reality of a post-Prop. 12 America, where every link in the food supply chain is impacted by new financial burdens imposed on producers.
The ads capture the sentiment of battleground state voters, validated by new polling released today, which shows that three-quarters of voters are stressed by increasing food costs, and a majority want to see Congress prohibit states from setting farm standards that apply beyond their borders. The polling also shows a wide gap with deep support in favor of Congress taking action on the farm standards issue.
The ads introduce audiences to “Cindy,” a hard-working food truck owner who has provided delicious pork barbeque from the “Perkins Family Pig Farm” to her community for over a decade. Prop. 12 forces Cindy to raise prices on her valued customers until she can no longer turn a profit or keep up with payments to her suppliers, including Perkins Pig Farm. As she shutters her business, we learn the Perkins Pig Farm has fallen to foreclosure. The ad depicts the challenges of Prop. 12, highlighting how this scenario could soon become a reality across America.
“The ad portrays a far too real story for pork producers, restaurant owners, and consumers across America,” said NPPC President and Minnesota pork producer Lori Stevermer. “Prop. 12 is an existential threat to pork producers and impacts consumers’ access to nutritious, affordable food.”
From 2017 to 2022, the U.S. lost more than 5,000 hog farms, a trend Prop. 12 risks perpetuating. The construction price of compliance could cost producers up to $4,000 per sow and has already caused a 20 percent surge in California’s pork prices. While large companies can afford the cost burden of Prop. 12, small and medium-sized operations will suffer, leading to further industry consolidation.
“Prop. 12 sets a dangerous precedent where one state can impose rules and regulations affecting farmers nationwide,” said Stevermer. “Pork producers and their veterinarians know what is best for their animals, and California should not be able to impose housing standards on the rest of the country. Prop. 12 is most harmful to our industry, but it is only a matter of time before other industries are impacted by decisions dictated by a particular state’s preference. It’s bad for businesses, it’s bad for consumers, and our new polling shows that voters don’t want it. We need a federal fix to this problem.”
The ad rollout coincides with the start of “Porktober” and follows NPPC’s Annual Legislative Conference in September when over 140 pork producers gathered in Washington to advocate for a fix to Prop. 12 in the Farm Bill. Producers and state executives were joined by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and the Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Committee John Boozman (R-AR).
To educate policy members and stakeholders on the critical need for a Farm Bill with a fix to Prop. 12, NPPC also hosted a pop-up food truck on Capitol Hill offering maple bacon donuts and information on the existential threat of Prop. 12 and other similar laws.
