Factory farming ban ballot measure secures needed signatures

If passed, the new regulations would phase out large scale animal agriculture operations over a three year period.

photo credit: Adam Fagen/flickr

A controversial ballot initiative aiming to ban factory farming in Sonoma County has cleared a big hurdle.

The Coalition to End Factory Farming is the group behind the initiative.

In a press release Wednesday, March 27th, the group said they've collected the necessary signatures, and received confirmation from the county registrar to get the proposed legislation put before voters.

The initiative targets concentrated animal feeding operations in Sonoma County - called CAFO's.

Campaigner Cassie King said the coalition believes around two dozen local animal agriculture businesses would be affected.

"They would have a three year phase out period from when the initiative passes to either close down their operation or come into compliance by no longer being a CAFO," King said. "Which would basically mean downsizing."

Supporters are using EPA standards to define the size of the various CAFO's - the affected businesses would mostly be those classed as "large."

That would include operations like dairies with 700 or more heads of cattle, or poultry farms with over 30,000 laying hens.

Strongly opposed to the measure: the Sonoma County Farm Bureau, said executive director Dayna Ghirardelli.

"We're gonna completely see our county change should this somehow pass," Ghirardelli said. "There's gonna be farms that we enjoy and see as we drive around our county that will essentially go out of business."

The Farm Bureau said renowned businesses like Straus Creamery, Clover Sonoma, and Petaluma Poultry would all be forced out of business should the initiative be approved by voters.

Besides chickens and cows, animals covered in the proposed initiative include: pigs, horses, sheep or lambs, turkeys, and ducks.

The ballot measure would also require Sonoma County to create a job re-training program for workers affected by closures.

The coalition behind the initiative is closely associated with the animal liberation group Direct Action Everywhere. Current and former members have been at the center of a high profile court case relating to protests at Sonoma County poultry facilities in recent years.

The ballot initiative is likely to go before voters in November.