More On Issue 2

How should we treat the animals we eat?
Voters will decide on state Livestock Care Standards Board this year before Humane Society issue next year.
By Josh Sweigart, Staff Writer
Updated 12:24 AM Sunday, October 18, 2009

Issue 2 is about how we treat our food.

It’s also a high-stakes political maneuver to save Ohio’s livestock industry from a radical animal rights agenda, proponents say. Opponents say it’s an effort to flout humane reform.

The constitutional amendment on the ballot in November would create the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board to regulate the treatment of animals raised for food.

The issue has been endorsed by most farm groups, those representing grocers and restaurants, state leaders and recently by Butler County commissioners.

If there needs to be rules about how farm animals are treated, they say those rules should be written by Ohio farmers, industry experts and veterinarians.

“The experts that live in Ohio, that know Ohio and are knowledgeable about Ohio should be the people to determine what those regulations are to establish,” said Butler County Farm Bureau Director Christy Montoya, who also is the Warren County Farm Bureau director.

They fear failure of Issue 2 would pave the way for animal rights groups to come to voters next year with a measure that would endanger the livelihood of family farmers by creating extensive new rules. Read More

Issue 2 in Ohio has certainly garnered a lot of attention from across the country. Opponents of the bill continue their tired arguments that this will only protect large factory farms even though countless family farmers continue to speak out on the importance of passing this bill. The facts are this, the Humane Society of the United States has a stated goal of eliminating animal agriculture in this country. If Issue 2 doesn’t pass, HSUS will move in with their own legislation to continue working on their goal.