Non Cage Free Dried Egg Whites in California

Hello all, 

Happy New Year.

So in California it is law that you cannot sell non cage free eggs, but based on the proposition (see below) I am not sure if dried egg whites fall into that category. A vendor is trying to sell dried egg whites to us that are not cage free. My boss says that as a manufacturer there is no problem to use it but based on what I'm understanding you cannot sell or purchase the eggs if you know they have been confined in a cruel manner. Can anyone help me on this?

Thank you.

Prohibitions.In addition to other applicable provisions of law:

 

(a) A farm owner or operator within the state shall not knowingly cause any covered animal to be confined in a cruel manner.

 

(b) A business owner or operator shall not knowingly engage in the sale within the state of any of the following:

 

(1) Whole veal meat that the business owner or operator knows or should know is the meat of a covered animal who was confined in a cruel manner.

 

(2) Whole pork meat that the business owner or operator knows or should know is the meat of a covered animal who was confined in a cruel manner, or is the meat of immediate offspring of a covered animal who was confined in a cruel manner.

 

(3) Shell egg that the business owner or operator knows or should know is the product of a covered animal who was confined in a cruel manner.

 

(4) Liquid eggs that the business owner or operator knows or should know are the product of a covered animal who was confined in a cruel manner.Prohibitions.In addition to other applicable provisions of law:

That's a gray area. I wouldn't take the risk.

To me the whole thing is left intentionally vague, so you'd have to have a definition of what "in a cruel manner" means definitively.   Cage or no cage does not define "in a cruel manner", I see nothing about the animals legally having to be free range animals.

I'd say the likelihood they'll come after you with the intention of putting in the time to prove such legally is next to zero.

On a side note, if you've never watched a youtube video about how egg/chicken facilities run, it's worth a watch.   If you're an animal love, it's pretty heartbreaking.   But if you like chicken sandwiches and omelettes, you must admit with the size of the planet and the amount of mouths to feed, it's pretty unavoidable.  Even under free range conditions, the life of a chicken doesn't look like much fun.....   I used to keep chickens, and they're anything but smart.   About a third of mine or so would get eaten by wildlife each year...

Hello!

I work in compliance for a shell egg farm in the United States and we raise both caged and Cage free eggs with our Cage free eggs shipping only to California; the law is a bit vague on this area but if this manufacturer was located in California they would only have cage free eggs available (whether it be shelled or liquid) to them to to purchase to dry down.    I would look into how you guys have your product labeled and where you are selling your product; if it says made with cage free eggs or is sold in California I would not be using that product as that is mislabeled product then and could get you in trouble with the state or the federal government.  

On a side note to reply to one of the above comments,  the Prop 12 in California actually has a set of standards (more than just "in a cruel manner") and you have to have an inspector come from California and audit your farm and get a certificate which shows that you comply to California set standards to be able to sell your eggs to anyone in California (whether or not your business/farm is located in California). 

Hello!

 

I work in compliance for a shell egg farm in the United States and we raise both caged and Cage free eggs with our Cage free eggs shipping only to California; the law is a bit vague on this area but if this manufacturer was located in California they would only have cage free eggs available (whether it be shelled or liquid) to them to to purchase to dry down.    I would look into how you guys have your product labeled and where you are selling your product; if it says made with cage free eggs or is sold in California I would not be using that product as that is mislabeled product then and could get you in trouble with the state or the federal government.  

 

On a side note to reply to one of the above comments,  the Prop 12 in California actually has a set of standards (more than just "in a cruel manner") and you have to have an inspector come from California and audit your farm and get a certificate which shows that you comply to California set standards to be able to sell your eggs to anyone in California (whether or not your business/farm is located in California). 

Hi Kass! This was very helpful thank you! The vendor is not from California, but if he is selling to us that we are in California and we are producing the finished product that will sell in California then the egg whites would have to be from cage free eggs correct? 

I emailed the California Department of Food and Agriculture and this is what they said:

I am going to assume from all this that the answer is no we cannot purchase dried egg whites from non cage free eggs.

 

Good Morning Karina,

 

Dried egg whites fall under Prop 12 and therefore the sale of dried eggs whites for your business in California also falls under Prop 12 and the dried egg whites must be from cage-free hens.

Eggs covered under Animal Confinement: https://www.cdfa.ca....Confinement.pdf

Sale under Animal Confinement: https://www.cdfa.ca....lesGuidance.pdf

FYI regarding shell eggs outside of California

WalMart, Costco and McDonalds have all published a mandate to go cage free eggs only (but have been delayed) 

https://www.theguard...est-climate-tax

https://corporate.mc...ree_farmer.html

https://customerserv... September 2022

This is big $$$   less birds/barn etc etc etc         If you think about the sheer size of an egg farm in Indiana or North Carolina, you'd have to multiply that by 3 with the same number of birds