Thursday, Nov. 11, 2002, Defenders Rural Updates via CropChoice
news: On Tuesday, November 5th, Florida voters effectively
curtailed the expansion of some factory farms into their state by
approving a landmark measure outlawing the use of gestation crates
for pregnant sows. Gestation crates are two foot wide metal enclosures
where pregnant female pigs at factory farms are kept. Factory farmed
sows endure as many as ten pregnancies in gestation crates, which
are so small the sows cannot turn around. This important victory
will prevent industrial hog factories that use gestation crates
from ever moving into the state. The measure will have little or
no effect on Florida's existing hog farmers, as no large-scale industrial
operations are currently located in the state. Instead, passage
will prevent the harm to rural communities and to the environment
that industrial hog operations bring with them. The ban is a boon
to the state's wildlife, which is critically important because Florida
is home to 117 species that are considered threatened, endangered,
or of special concern, the third highest concentration of such species
in any state.
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