January 28, 2026 – The Trump administration is suing Michigan to overturn a law that bans cages on egg farms in the state and mandates all eggs sold in the state come from cage-free systems. It filed a similar lawsuit against California in July of 2025.
In both complaints, Department of Justice (DOJ) lawyers make the case that the cage-free egg laws have raised prices and that a federal law, the Egg Products Inspection Act, preempts state laws. “It is the prerogative of the federal government alone to regulate the quality and inspection of eggs in interstate commerce,” they write.
Michigan ranks seventh in the country for egg production, according to Michigan Allied Poultry Industries, with its farms producing about 5 billion eggs each year. About 75 percent have completed the transition to cage-free systems.
“This lawsuit disregards settled law, ignores industry realities, and does nothing to address the real challenges facing egg producers and consumers alike,” Wayne Pacelle, president of animal welfare advocacy group Animal Wellness Action, said in a statement.
Animal welfare concerns have driven a broader shift toward cage-free production across the country, after years of advocates driving consumer awareness of cramped conditions for hens in caged systems. Michigan is one of 11 states that ban caged production and one of eight that only allow the sale of cage-free eggs. The USDA estimates close to half of the country’s egg production is now cage free, and some large companies like McDonald’s have switched completely.
The Supreme Court upheld California’s animal welfare law—which applies to cage-free eggs and crate-free pork—in 2023 and declined to take up another challenge brought by the pork industry last year.
However, a farm bill draft, expected in late February, will likely reignite the fight on Capitol Hill: Republicans in Congress have indicated they’ll try to include a provision to overturn the state laws. The pork industry has pushed hard in support of that effort, while a new coalition of independent meat producers is lobbying to defend the state laws as beneficial for small, family farms. (Link to this post.)
The post Trump DOJ Sues Michigan to Overturn Cage-Free Egg Law appeared first on Civil Eats.
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The cost to renovate existing infrastructure is going to be too high for the operators in both lost revenue (can’t have the house in production while the cages are being installed along with the necessary water and feeding systems) and the cost of equipment and installation.
