Proposed legislation backed by The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) to ban individual sow stalls during gestation suffered a swift defeat in the Nebraska legislature.
State Sen. DiAnna Schimek introduced Legislative Bill 1148 on Jan. 23. The legislation proposed to phase out the use of sow gestation stalls by Jan. 1, 2014.
A strong factual presentation of the effect this bill would have on Nebraska pork producers, and a direct request by Nebraska pork producers to Sen. Schimek to withdraw the bill resulted in the Nebraska legislature voting to approve the withdrawal of the bill on Jan. 28.
Nebraska pork producer officials say the battle has been won, but not the war, and they expect further actions soon by the HSUS in Nebraska.