The U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed the California law saying that pigs must have enough room to turn around and lie down for their meat to be sold here in the state, in a ruling that sliced wildly across ideological lines.

Remember those threats of a looming bacon shortage a couple of years back, where the pig farming industry said a new California law would cause the price of bacon and pork to skyrocket? Haha, joke was on them, because the price of everything skyrocketed in the last couple years. The supposed shortage and price increases were linked to a 2018 California ballot measure called Prop. 12, which 63% of the state’s voters approved, saying that pigs must be raised with 24 square feet of space and enough room for them to turn around for their meat to be sold in California. (The law is currently on hold over separate litigation.)

The National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau sued, and  took the case all the way to the Supreme Court. But the Associated Press reports that Thursday morning, the Supreme Court upheld California’s pig confinement regulations in a close 5-4 vote.

“While the Constitution addresses many weighty issues, the type of pork chops California merchants may sell is not on that list,” Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote in the majority opinion, according to the Washington Post.

California does not produce much pork, but it certainly consumes a lot. The Post estimates that “Californians consume 13 percent of the nation’s pork, with 99.9 percent of that meat produced beyond the state’s borders.” Those farming and pork industry lobbies argued the law violates the Constitution’s interstate commerce clause that says states cannot regulate industries outside their borders.  But the court ruled that this law only regulates pork and bacon sales within California, not other states.

The pork industry is not hog wild over the legal setback. "Allowing state overreach will increase prices for consumers and drive small farms out of business, leading to more consolidation," National Pork Producers Council president Scott Hays said in a statement to Reuters.

This particular case jimmied the court’s ideological left-right divide; conservative justices like Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas, and Amy Coney Barrett sided with the California animal rights law, and liberal justice Ketanji Brown Jackson opposed it. According to NBC News, five justices wrote their own separate opinions.

And the Associated Press adds that the Biden administration also wanted the California law overturned, arguing in briefings that the law would create a "wholesale change in how pork is raised and marketed in this country" and would throw "a giant wrench" into the pork and bacon industries.

Our own state attorney general Rob Bonta was tasked with defending the law. NBC News reports that Bonta successfully argued in filings that the law was “not aimed at benefiting California producers over out-of-state competitors.”

Related: Supreme Court Agrees to Review CA Pork Production Law That Caused Fears of Looming Bacon Shortage [SFist]

Image: KG Baek via Unsplash

The Supreme Court has agreed to review a challenge to a California law that was set to take effect this year that was intended to curb animal cruelty by banning the sale of veal, pork, and eggs that were not humanely raised.

You may recall talk of a looming bacon shortage late last year, as Prop 12 from 2018 was set to take effect on January 1. California voters approved Proposition 12, which "ban[s] the sale of (a) veal from calves, (b) pork from breeding pigs, and (c) eggs from hens when the animals are confined to areas below minimum square-feet requirements." And while the issue with veal and eggs from inhumane farms looked less likely to impact supplies in the state, pork production is another story, and both grocery chains and pig farmers pushed back and said they would not be able to comply with the law quickly or at reasonable expense.

To be clear, all the law requires is that pigs raised for slaughter are given enough room to turn around in their pens. And California allowed a delay for when the law takes effect, which is why no "bacon apocalypse" has occurred so far.

The National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation sued the state, and now the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case. As the Associated Press reports, the case is expected to be argued in the court's next term, which begins in October.

It has been assumed all along that Prop 12 would lead to higher prices for veal and pork products in California, and perhaps less availability of cheap, factory-farmed eggs — the state already produces a lot of its own eggs that meet the requirements for hens and ample cage space.

But this suit is the angle that California voters shouldn't be able to impact the cost of meat for the rest of the country. The suit states that the "massive costs of complying" with the law will "fall almost exclusively on out-of-state farmers' and suggests that those costs will have to be passed on to everyone nationwide.

As we previously noted, California consumes about 13% of the nation's pork, which means that pork producers will be forced to comply with the law or else lose that market share to producers who will.

The plaintiffs in the suit are arguing that California's law interferes with interstate commerce and sound business practices, as the New York Times reports. And their attorneys said in a brief, "Almost no sow farmers in the country satisfy Proposition 12’s sow housing requirements, and most believe that those requirements would harm their animals, employees and operations."

That seems kind of spurious — more space would harm the animals? California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed his own brief, saying that the plaintiffs "overstate the practical economic effects of Proposition 12," and asserting that voters have a legitimate interest in restricting "extreme methods of farm animal confinement," and in protecting their own food supply from the ill effects of factory farming, like food-borne illnesses. Bonta adds that "a number of pork producers and suppliers have publicly announced that they have taken steps to ensure that their products will continue to be sold lawfully in California" when the law takes effect.

But because California doesn't do any (large-scale) pork production of its own, the plaintiffs argue that the new law effectively tries to regulate pig farming in other states like Iowa.

A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals previously ruled against the pork producers, saying, "State laws that regulate only conduct in the state, including the sale of products in the state, do not have impermissible extraterritorial effects."

But it sounds like the conservative-dominated Supreme Court may disagree, or why would they have taken up the case? In any event, we likely won't know the outcome until next year, and the inhuman pork products are likely to stay on our shelves until then.

Previously: Alleged Looming Bacon Shortage Has Trade Groups Squealing For a Delay In New Regulations

Some claim pork prices could fatten up by 60% when a new California law takes effect January 1, but this may be industry trade groups just hoping to bring home more bacon.

You may have been hearing hysteria for much of 2021 over a so-called looming bacon shortage. And indeed, bacon prices have gone up this year, though it's unclear whether that’s because of general inflation, supply chain issues, or just agricultural conglomerates crying like Chicken Little to justify price increases. But the California discussion of an alleged pork shortage comes thanks to a new animal cruelty prevention regulation set to take effect January 1, 2022, which some claim will increase the price of bacon “by 60%.”  

"We’re saying this is not going to work," California Grocers Association spokesperson Nate Rose complains to the Associated Press, in a report picked up by KTVU. But that same report quotes a Humane Society organizer who dismisses this as"pork industry claims of the apocalypse."

This all springs from a 2018 California measure called Prop. 12, wherein 63% of voters approved a “ban the sale of (a) veal from calves, (b) pork from breeding pigs, and (c) eggs from hens when the animals are confined to areas below minimum square-feet requirements.” The livestock industry can transition pretty easily when it comes to chicken and eggs. But when it comes to bacon and pork, which require large adult pigs, they claim this will make it impossible to sell their pig products in California.

The argument so far has been that it will cost pig farmers with over 1,000 animals about 15% more per animal to comply with the requirements — which simply call for giving the pigs enough room to turn around in their pens. But if California consumes 13% of the nation's pork, and the farms stand to lose that market, maybe they'll ultimately have to comply, and pass costs on to consumers.

Most California meat is raised outside the state, in the Midwest. The National Pork Producers Council sued over implementing the law, and were unsuccessful. But the AP reports on what is likely to be a more successful challenge; a lawsuit from the California Grocers Association and a number of other trade groups, asking for a “28-month delay until final regulations for enforcement of the rules are officially adopted.”

After all, the state just finished public comment on the new rules, a bureaucratic milestone, but one that means the regulations that are supposed to take effect January 1 are probably nowhere near ready yet.

So it’s likely we will see a delay in the implementation. But it’s also likely we’ll see pork prices increase on January 1 anyway, because trade groups are excellent at manipulating hysteria.

But these are the same trade groups that were curiously quiet when COVID-19 outbreaks hit meat-packing facilities. And frankly, maybe bacon should be an expensive delicacy to be enjoyed on rare occasions. The meat industry is destroying the planet, there are excellent plant-based alternatives to pork, and perhaps higher bacon prices are the right cure.

Related: Delicious Bacon Aroma Forces 'Bacon Bacon' Closure [SFist]

Image: @jamesrkern via Unsplash

Back in May, noted pork purveyor Bacon Bacon was forced to close the doors of its Upper Haight/Cole Valley outpost due in part to neighbor's complaints about the "obnoxious" and "acrid" smell of bacon emanating from the space (as well as confusion over a permitting issue). Yesterday, Bacon Bacon was exonerated after a city hearing, although owner Jim Angelus will have to install a ventilation system that should mitigate some of the smells in front of its Frederick Street shop.

The conflict between porkophiles and neighborhood porkophobes sparked a nationwide fixation that included an SNL skit and a recent Wall Street Journal headline, which noted that "the Haight-Ashbury district was all about peace and love until bacon entered the picture" and "the scent of bacon grease was blowin' in the wind" (ugh, and ugh).

The lead up to the hearing was a flurry of community agitation, both by supporters and opponents of the bacontastic outpost. Vocal meatlovers are nothing new in this city, and Uppercasing received a notice under their doors urging neighbors to stand strong against the bacon activists, noting that "This should not be a popularity contest but a matter of what is proper business behavior and right for a residential neighborhood."

Aside from the new ventilation system, Angelus has agreed to use his other location inside Brick and Mortar for the commissary kitchen to prep food for the Bacon Bacon truck. The Upper Haight Bacon Bacon should reopen in a couple months.

Previously: All SFist Bacon Bacon coverage.

[WSJ]
[Inside Scoop]

Bacon Bacon fights back against bacon-aroma haters in the hood with this revamped window at their Cole Valley location. Eater notes: "Bacon Bacon's day of reckoning with the Planning Commission is coming up fast, and founder Jim Angelus just sent us a photo of his new window decor, encouraging people to attend on July 11th."

The noted bacon joint, if you recall, had to close in May due a couple of neighbors complaining about the delicious yet persistent smell of bacon, among other issues. This prompte a hat-tip on SNL, as well as an op-ed by Nevis.

You have until 2:30 pm today, folks, to head over to the new Bacon Bacon outpost on the Mission, located inside Brick & Mortar (1710 Mission). The noted baconry will be open for business this week and onward from 11 am-2:30 pm.

If you recall, the cured-pork purveyor had to close shop in May after receiving complaints from neighbors about, among other things, the addictive aroma of bacon. The mild controversy even made its way to Weekend Update on SNL.

Here Bacon Bacon appears on Eat Street.

Recent James Beard Award-winner Danny Bowien made an appearance on last night's episode of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and the two made Mission Chinese Food's thrice-cooked bacon while chatting about an Oklahoma tornado fundraising (Bowien is from Moore, where the tornado wreaked most of its havoc), orange julius gin and juice, and giant chopsticks.

Watch below for some typical Bowien chillness, Fallon shenanigans, and a special shout-out to Tartine Bakery:

Previously: 'Rising Star' Danny Bowien Planning New S.F. Restaurant, Danny Bowien, State Bird Provisions Win Big At James Beard Awards

[Eater]
[Inside Scoop]

The bacon backlash has begun. Popular food truck turned cafe, Bacon Bacon, purveyor of "the Bacon Bouquet" and "Chocolate-covered Bacon," must to temporarily close its doors Friday in the Upper Haight. Why? Well, neighbors have complained about the smoky, rich, one-of-a-kind aroma wafting from the truck - which, let's face it, can get old if it hits you 24/7. Residents have also complaned about improper grease disposal to boot.

SF Examiner reports:

Department of Public Health officials say the owners of Bacon Bacon, located at 205A Frederick Street, have had months since opening the space to address these and other concerns. But following their failure to do so, the restaurant must shut its doors.

“We allow businesses to operate for awhile under change of ownership,” said Richard Lee, director of environmental health regulatory programs, Department of Public Health. “But they didn’t meet the deadline.”

[...]

Residents were able to express their concerns following the location’s change in ownership. Neighbors took the occasion to raise concerns with the lack of a filtration system to alleviate the aroma of bacon, illegal parking of a related food truck on a residential street and claims that bacon grease was dumped directly into the sewer system, according to their attorney Ryan Patterson.

Patterson goes on to say that they disgruntled neighbors in question refuse to work with Bacon Bacon.

As expected, this minor blow-up has rubbed the cured-porcine community the wrong way. Almost 1,700 people have signed a petition to show support. According to Bacon Bacon, it's the work of two nearby residents. BB notes: "Two neighbors near Bacon Bacon want to see our doors closed. We need your support. We are collecting signatures from neighbors, friends, family and fans to show San Francisco City Planning that Bacon Bacon isn’t going anywhere.?

Hopefully, they can clean up their act and keep locals happy (note to food establishments: no matter how popular you are, or how much glowing press you receive, it's always a safe bet to keep the neighborhood content).

Bacon Bacon has 75 days to resolve the issues, according to a letter sent by the City Health Department.

Rachael Schafer snapped this shot of bacon being cooked/kept warm on someone's dashboard at Sanchez and 23rd in Noe Valley.

Schafer tells us, "We were just strolling by...pushing strollers and there it is. I'm guessing they bought some pork belly, spiced it up abd are curing it in a parked smokehouse!"

Ingenious. Also, great for longevity.

Did you know that today is Elvis' birthday? (Is there a sign more unfortunate being born under than that of Capricorn? [Hi, Andrew!]) And with that, we must tell you that Chef Charlie Ayers, first executive chef at Google, will honor The King's birthday at Calafia restaurant in Palo Alto with the following menu:

- Grilled Peanut Butter, Bacon and Banana Sandwich
- Fried Chicken Biscuits & Southern Milk Gravy with Mashed Potatoes and Cole Slaw
- Jelly Donuts

Sweet Jesus, that sounds excellent. If you find yourself in Palo Alto tonight, be sure to drop by.

Oh, and it's also David Bowie's birthday today -- we know this because everyone on Facebook felt the need to point it out, because of course -- but we have no idea what the man who fell to Earth likes to eat, unless it's Mick Jagger's tender, true love .

Calafia: 55 El Camino Real (at Embarcadero Road), Palo Alto, 650-322-9200

Ah, the Pork Store Cafe. What a grand place to eat away a hangover. Speaking of, they just released a new ad, which is rather nifty if we do say so. Also, starting tomorrow, the Pork Store Cafe will offer a free side of bacon for customers who mention, "The food is bad and the service is slow" while ordering a meal. (Something to think about, Mission Chinese Food.)

The deal lasts until Thanksgiving.

Two locations:
1451 Haight Street, 415-864-698
3122 - 16th Street, 415-626-5523

Ooohhh, that wasn't very nice of us. Consider it some well-aged snark for lunch. But, come on: all this needs is a girl with bangs playing the ukulele for her boyfriend sporting a waxed-tipped moustache.

As Laughing Squid notes: "iTypewriter by designer Austin Yang is an ingenious mechanical typewriter accessory for iPad. When a key is depressed, a typebar strikes the corresponding key on the iPad’s touchscreen (to see it work, skip to the 0:35 mark in this video). At present the iTypewriter appears to be just a concept."

Check out the precious iTypewriter in action below:

And now, for your summer viewing/eating enjoyment, the kids at Bacon Bacon food truck have something they're working on. They write, "A little research and development at HQ today. Why use bread crumbs? Bacon breaded chicken breast. Getting close."

Looking forward to the final results! Until then, their test stage looks mighty damn fine. Stay tuned.