What Needs Saving

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The Save Our Bacon Act just passed the House of Representatives. Its stated goal is protecting interstate commerce. What it would actually do is nullify voter-approved state laws banning gestation crates, battery cages, and veal crates — the most basic protections farm animals have. This episode looks at what the bill does, who is behind it, and what the science tells us about the animals at the center of it all.

References & further reading

The Save Our Bacon Act & Farm Bill

• H.R. 4673 — Save Our Bacon Act, 119th Congress. Congress.gov.
• ASPCA — Oppose Attacks on Animal Protection Laws in the Farm Bill. Includes action tools to contact your Senator directly.
• Humane World for Animals — You can help pigs and stop Big Pork's power grab. Overview of the Farm Bill's animal welfare implications.
• Barn Raising Media — The Save Our Bacon Act Is a Trojan Hog. In-depth analysis of the bill's history and implications.
• National Hog Farmer — House Farm Bill passes with Prop 12 fix. Industry perspective on the bill's passage.

California Proposition 12 & Massachusetts Question 3

• California Department of Food and Agriculture — Proposition 12 overview.
• Massachusetts — Question 3: Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act.
• Schiff, Adam et al. (2025) — Senate letter opposing the Food Security and Farm Protection Act. Signed by 32 Democratic Senators.

The history of this legislation

• King Amendment (2014) — Original version inserted into the Farm Bill. Stripped before passage.
• Protect Interstate Commerce Act — Subsequent iteration. Failed in committee.
• EATS Act (Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression Act) — Previous Congress version. Opposed by 32 Senators in 2025.
• National Hog Farmer — Bipartisan amendment aims to strike Save Our Bacon Act. Details the cross-party opposition in the House.

Pig cognition & welfare

• Marino, Lori & Colvin, Christina M. (2015) — Thinking pigs: A comparative review of cognition, emotion, and personality in Sus domesticus. International Journal of Comparative Psychology.
• Held, Suzanne et al. (2002) — Foraging behaviour in domestic pigs: Remembering and prioritizing food sites of different values. Animal Cognition 5(4).
• Broom, D.M. et al. (2009) — Pigs learn what a mirror image represents and use it to obtain information. Animal Behaviour 78(5).
• Fraser, David (2008) — Understanding Animal Welfare: The Science in its Cultural Context. Wiley-Blackwell. Includes extensive research on gestation crate confinement effects.
• Pig Advocacy Coalition — Pig cognition research overview.

Gestation crates & confinement

• Barnett, J.L. et al. (2001) — A review of the welfare issues for sows and piglets in relation to housing. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 52(1).
• von Borell, E. et al. (1997) — Stress and the welfare of sows in different housing systems. Livestock Production Science 49(3).
• ASPCA — Farm Animal Welfare: Pigs. Accessible overview of gestation crate conditions and documented behavioral effects.

Take action

• ASPCA — Contact your Senator about the Farm Bill. One-click tool to send a message directly to your representatives.
• Humane Society of the United States — Stopping Factory Farming.