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New Jersey May Be First in U.S. to Outlaw Cruel Farming, Agriculture Department Has Received 20,000 Letters Urging Humane Standards To Be Passed

NEW JERSEY - December 12, 2001 - The state of New Jersey is the only state with legislation requiring the humane treatment of farm animals, and it is in a unique position to play a leading role toward changing America's shameful neglect of farm animal welfare. The state Department of Agriculture has received roughly 20,000 letters from concerned citizens urging the drafting of humane standards for the treatment of farm animals, including nine from New Jersey state legislators.

In Jan. 1996, the New Jersey state legislature enacted a law requiring the state Department of Agriculture to, within six months, develop standards for humane treatment of farm animals. Six years later, the standards have not been drafted. Though obviously foot-dragging on the issue, the state still has the remarkable opportunity to improve the lives of millions of animals.

According to Gene Baur (formerly Bauston), director of Farm Sanctuary, "Practices employed on factory farms cannot be considered 'humane,' and therefore they must be prohibited pursuant to New Jersey law. On modern factory farms, cows, pigs, chickens and other animals are treated like inanimate commodities rather than living beings. They are packed by the thousands into warehouse-like sheds, in crates or cages where they cannot turn around, stretch their limbs, escape their own waste products or, in some cases, even lie down comfortably."

Such conditions are so cruel they are being outlawed across Europe. But unfortunately, laws protecting farm animals in the U.S. are grossly inadequate. When two live hens were found discarded in a trash can full of dead birds at ISE egg factory in Broadway, New Jersey, ISE was taken to court, but was found "not guilty" of animal cruelty. Shockingly, ISE's lawyer asserted that it is legally acceptable to treat live birds as if they were manure. When the judge asked, "Isn't there a big distinction between manure and live animals?" ISE's lawyer responded, "No, your honor."

Factory farming has not yet infiltrated New Jersey as it has other states, but some factory farms have moved into New Jersey, making it imperative that the state acts to adopt the humane treatment standards. For more information, including scientific research, regarding problems associated with intensive confinement agriculture, please see: www.factoryfarming.com. For more information about Farm Sanctuary, visit www.farmsanctuary.org.

About Farm Sanctuary
Farm Sanctuary is the nation's leading farm animal protection organization. Since incorporating in 1986, Farm Sanctuary has worked to expose and stop cruel practices of the "food animal" industry through research and investigations, legal and institutional reforms, public awareness projects, youth education, and direct rescue and refuge efforts. Farm Sanctuary shelters in Watkins Glen, N.Y., and Orland, Calif., provide lifelong care for hundreds of rescued animals, who have become ambassadors for farm animals everywhere by educating visitors about the realities of factory farming. Additional information can be found at www.farmsanctuary.org or by calling 607-583-2225.