Eggs-asperated: Justice Dept. battles states over cage-free laws

The Trump administration, under pressure to lower food costs, is suing states that require eggs for sale in grocery stores come from cage-free hens.

The price of eggs, which had skyrocketed by the end of the Biden administration, has dropped significantly since Mr. Trump took office. But his administration is determined to quash regulations they believe are contributing to higher egg prices as it tackles affordability, a key voter issue.

In Michigan and more than a dozen other states, laws are in place that ban or limit the use of cages to house egg-laying hens, which according to Justice Department lawsuits “has raised prices for American consumers.”

Michigan is the second state targeted by the Justice Department over egg production regulations since Mr. Trump took office. The lawsuit was filed in January.

“The State of Michigan’s bureaucratic red tape and imposition of unnecessary regulations in the egg market have led to higher prices for American families,” Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate told The Washington Times. “This Department of Justice will work to free consumers from this regulatory burden and increase economic prosperity for Americans.”

The department sued California in July, challenging a state law passed by referendum in 2018 that, like Michigan, mandates eggs sold in the state come from cage-free farms.

Justice Department lawyers charged the states with driving up national egg prices by imposing “costly requirements on farmers” that prohibit them from using “commonly accepted agricultural methods that keep eggs affordable.”

The two federal lawsuits were filed as market demand has increased for humanely raised farm animals and as consumers have indicated they are willing to pay more for ethically produced products.

Battery cages typically used for egg-laying hens are small, wired enclosures that limit each hen to about 67 square inches of space.

Market demand for cage-free eggs has increased as more states have imposed regulations on egg farmers that restrict the use of cages and require that shelled eggs sold in grocery stores are produced cage-free.

United Egg Producers, which represents the interests of regional egg producers, reported nearly 39% of all egg-laying hens in the U.S. are housed cage-free, up from 12% in 2016.

In addition to Michigan and California, states that have banned the sale of shelled eggs from caged hens include Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Massachusetts and Arizona.

Several other states have implemented restrictions on use of battery cages for farm animals but have not prohibited sales outright. Florida, for example, became the first state to impose a gestation crate production ban in 2008 that prohibits farms from confining pigs to spaces that prevent them from turning around freely.

Animal welfare activists have pushed much of the shift away from cages for hens and other farm animals, claiming the public is demanding it.

They report, on the site cagefreelaws.com, that “consumers are the driving force behind these laws.”

In California, 63% of voters backed a 2018 referendum mandating only cage-free eggs are sold in the state. Three quarters of Massachusetts voters passed a similar law in 2016 banning the sale of eggs from caged hens.

The left-of-center public opinion research group Data for Progress found in a 2022 poll that 80% of 1,350 likely voters consider preventing cruelty to farm animals “a matter of moral concern.”

But raising farm animals in less confined environments costs more, say food producers and agriculture experts.

Cage-free facilities for egg-laying hens require nearly double the capital investment, more workers, specialized labor and feed, compared to caged systems, Michigan State University researchers found in 2021.

Cage-free farms allow hens to roam in an open area or facility, allowing them to more easily spread their wings and “exhibit natural behavior,” MSU researchers said.

The researchers warned that the cage-free law in Michigan could drive up egg prices already impacted by an ongoing avian flu outbreak.

But the state’s egg prices are relatively low since the law took effect in January 2025.

On Thursday, a dozen cage-free eggs were for sale at Meijer grocery stores in Michigan for $1.99.

That’s lower than a conventional dozen eggs for sale in many other states without cage-free laws, including Florida, where a dozen eggs was for sale at Publix for $2.99.

Michigan’s cage-free prices are slightly higher than the $1.37 per dozen reported on Jan. 23 by the U.S. Agriculture Department for conventional caged eggs.

Cage-free does not necessarily mean wide-open spaces are provided for hens.

In Nevada, for example, a cage-free law implemented this year requires egg producers provide one square foot of roaming space per hen. The Michigan law requires hens each have a square foot of space plus access to nest boxes, scratch areas and perches.

Michigan is the nation’s 7th-largest egg producer. Industry representatives say if the Trump administration is successful in blocking the cage-free law, the state’s egg farmers will have to compete in Michigan with companies allowed to produce eggs without cage-free requirements and at a lower cost.

Michigan’s egg producers have invested more than $100 million collectively in converting production from caged to cage-free egg production.

“Cage free eggs will still be on the shelves. We will still be producing cage free eggs, but we will lose a big share of the market,” Nancy Barr, executive director of Michigan Allied Poultry Industries, told The Times.

For the Trump administration, the lawsuits are part of efforts aimed at reducing consumer costs, which have become a top voter issue ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

While egg prices are way down from one year ago, when they reached a record high of nearly $5 per dozen, the cost of eggs is expected to rise in 2026 thanks to avian flu outbreaks and production costs, the USDA said.

Beef, sugar, coffee and dairy products are also forecast to cost more this year, according to the USDA.

In its lawsuit against California’s cage-free mandate, Justice Department lawyers said the law cut egg production in the state by 35% and raised the average price of a dozen eggs by 20%.

A dozen eggs, raised cage-free, cost $3.99 at Safeway in Alameda, California, on Thursday.

The cage-free requirements, Justice Department lawyers said, “were driven by activists’ conception of what qualifies as ’cruel’ animal housing, not by consumer purchasing decisions or scientifically based food safety or animal welfare standards.”

Gov. Gavin Newsom is fighting the lawsuit, and his press team mocked the Trump administration on social media for frequently targeting Mr. Newsom, a likely 2028 Democratic presidential candidate.

“Trump’s back to his favorite hobby: blaming California for literally everything,” his press office posted on social media. “Next up: Gavin Newsom caused the fall of Rome and sent the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs!”

Michigan officials have not yet responded to the lawsuit.