U.S. Supreme Court Ruling on Proposition 12 Expected in Early 2023

Oct 25, 2022

The President of the National Pork Producers Council says the U.S. Supreme Court has a lot to go over as it considers the constitutionality of California's Proposition 12.

Representatives of the National Pork Producers Council and the National Farm Bureau Federation presented oral arguments last week in their case to the Supreme Court of the United States against California's Proposition 12, a ballot initiative passed in 2018 that bans the sale of pork in that state not raised in accordance with that state's requirements.

Terry Wolters, the President of the National Pork Producers Council, says the judges were very well versed, very prepared and had some extremely pointed questions.

Clip-Terry Wolters-National Pork Producers Council:

Since this rule was passed in 2018 we really have been arguing that under the Dormant Commerce Clause, it's unconstitutional for California to regulate commerce outside of its state.We primarily felt like the case was brought on behalf of the pork producers.It is much broader than just agriculture.While we were talking largely about pork that day, we feel like it challenges or jeopardises all of commerce across many states.

There were conversations about potential labelling, there were questions about whether California was trying to bully the rest of the states, there were questions that dealt with, potentially if this was to stand what other aspects or subjects would be brought forward and could additional restrictions like wage laws or if your employees are vaccinated, questions that really got very pointed about how these propositions and referendums would actually impact commerce in other states.

Wolters acknowledges the Supreme Court justices have a lot to consider.He anticipates a ruling a ruling in January or February of next year.

Source : Farmscape.ca

Video: Swine Industry Advances: Biodigesters Lower Emissions and Increase Profits

Analysis of greenhouse gas (GHG emissions) in the Canadian swine sector found that CH4 emissions from manure were the largest contributor to the overall emissions, followed by emissions from energy use and crop production.

This innovative project, "Improving Swine Manure-Digestate Management Practices Towards Carbon Neutrality With Net Zero Emission Concepts," from Dr. Rajinikanth Rajagopal, under Swine Cluster 4, seeks to develop strategies to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.

While the management of manure can be very demanding and expensive for swine operations, it can also be viewed as an opportunity for GHG mitigation, as manure storage is an emission source built and managed by swine producers. Moreover, the majority of CH4 emissions from manure occur during a short period of time in the summer, which can potentially be mitigated with targeted intervention.

In tandem with understanding baseline emissions, Dr. Rajagopal's work focuses on evaluating emission mitigation options. Manure additives have the potential of reducing manure methane emissions. Additives can be deployed relatively quickly, enabling near-term emission reductions while biodigesters are being built. Furthermore, additives can be a long-term solution at farms where biogas is not feasible (e.g., when it’s too far from a central digester). Similarly, after biodigestion, additives can also be used to further reduce emissions from storage to minimize the carbon intensity of the bioenergy.