In response to customer pressure, Cargill “intends to phase out all individual stalls from its…hog production system by the end of 2017,” says the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. A behemoth of agribusiness, Cargill is one of the largest U.S. pork producers. The Star-Tribune says the shift from stalls to group pens “could cost $2 billion or more throughout the industry.” Many producers resist the move because of uncertainty of recovering the outlay.
The Humane Society of the United States said the so-called sow crates would be eliminated. “Americans simply don’t support locking animals in cages barely larger than their bodies and Cargill is right to be leading its industry away from the practice,” it said.