President’s Message:
The Federal EATS Act Would Remove Many State Protections for Farm Animals
We love our companion animals and often appeal to our state representatives to improve animal protection laws, but we must not forget farm animals. Those of us who have visited farm sanctuaries and looked into the eyes of horses, cows, sheep, and other animals there, know these are intelligent, sensitive, sentient beings as needing of kindness as any cat or dog. So we must care about improving their lives as well.
Public advocacy in many states has resulted in laws to improve the living conditions of animals in factory farms, fetid places that, among other horrors, imprison hens, pregnant sows, and veal calves in cages and crates that prevent the inmates from lying down or simply moving their limbs freely. To date, 15 states have made life better for these animals by enacting legislation that bans the use of many of these tortuous confinements.
Yet, as expected, the factory farm interests have pushed back hard. In an effort to thwart the efforts of those states — under the guise of supporting unrestricted interstate commerce — they have influenced federal legislators to insert the Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression (EATS) Act in the federal Farm Bill. EATS would undermine the individual states’ regulations on all the farm animals specified in the Act. Not only that, the reach of EATS act is wide and could threaten other state animal protective laws, for example, New York’s recent Puppy Mill Pipeline Act, as well as the new anti-horse slaughter legislation.
A version of the Farm Bill passed out of the House Agriculture Committee in May. However, because of disagreements arising from the differences between the House and Senate versions and the lateness of the bill in the session, it seems the Farm Bill will not be voted on this year. That means we have time to stop the EATS act. The ALDF stated that the future of the Farm Bill hinges on the outcome of the election, so it is not clear if the EATS act in some form will be included in the final Farm Bill. The ALDF urges everyone to contact their federal Representatives and Senators and urge them to oppose the EATS Act.
Though NYSHA abhors factory farming and the goal of all animal activists is to eliminate it, that will be a long struggle well into the future. In the meantime, we must try to help the animals suffering NOW, as well as not lose the advances we have made to protect other animals in our state. So, please let your federal representatives know you care how the animals in factory farms are treated. Let them know you want states to retain their rights to improve conditions for them, as well as retain the laws that states have already passed to protect companion animals and horses. Let them know you do NOT want the EATS act in any Farm Bill — ever.
Please click on this link to find your representative: pluralpolicy.com/open
Please be kind to animals,
Patricia Valusek
New York State Humane Association Humane Review, Vol.XLIV, Fall 2024.