Corby Kummer: "There's Not Going to Be An Egg Shortage" in Massachusetts

Massachusetts state legislators may revise a 2016 ballot law on animal welfare to prevent a potential statewide egg shortage. Award-winning food writer Corby Kummer joined Boston Public Radio on Thursday to share his thoughts on this, and more.

“First of all, there’s not going to be an egg shortage,” Kummer said. “It’s only an economic measure to protect farmers.”

While the law also contains enclosure standards for pigs and calves, legislators are concerned with rules on acceptable enclosure space for egg-laying hens. According to the bill, egg-laying hens must be given at least 1.5 square feet of floor space and be able to fully extend both wings without touching the sides of the enclosure. In a measure to counteract the potential egg shortage, lawmakers are attempting to amend the enclosure requirements from 1.5 square feet to 1 square foot, following enclosure laws in other states. Unless legislators pass this amendment, the law will go into effect as written on Jan. 1, 2022.

Representatives for egg farmers, supermarkets, and some animal rights activists support changes to the law, noting that vertical or multi-tiered aviary systems that allow hens to fly upwards, perch, and roost within 1 square foot. While Kummer acknowledged that some farmers may struggle economically to adjust enclosure spaces to fit this new rule, he believes that the idea of an egg shortage caused by enclosure regulations is an “excuse.”

“This is another way for the industry to protect itself at the expense of animal welfare,” Kummer said. “But, if the country has enacted 1 square foot, then maybe Massachusetts should be consistent with that.”

Kummer is the executive director of the Food and Society policy program at the Aspen Institute, a senior editor at The Atlantic and a senior lecturer at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.