New laws were proposed this spring in Iowa, Minnesota and Florida that would make it a crime to take undercover videos or photos at industrial farms, a tactic often used to show mistreatment of animals and unsanitary conditions, the New York Times reported.

In response to this development, the Times invited nine experts to debate issues related to farm animal welfare. The director of the UC Agricultural Issues Center, Dan Sumner, took part in the discussion, noting that in addition to legal and moral questions, there are economic issues worth...

Last month's enormous egg recall continues to generate news coverage about efforts to keep salmonella-contaminated eggs out of the U.S. food supply.

Experts quoted in a Los Angeles Times story published yesterday agreed that salmonella contamination can happen in any egg production system - large operations, small family farms or in the backyard. Chickens infected with salmonella shed the pathogen in their feces, which can contaminate the egg shell. In rare instances, salmonella infects a hen's ovaries and can end up inside the eggs she lays, the article said.

A Texas A&M University professor said eggs from large-scale...

As producers and government agencies continue to investigate last month's enormous recall of Iowa-produced eggs, California egg farmers are pondering whether new rules that will govern the state's hen houses will play a role in preventing or exacerbating egg-borne illness, said an article in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Proposition 2, enacted by a wide margin of California voters in 2008, will require egg producers to provide adequate room for their hens to turn around freely, lie down, stand up and fully extend their limbs.

A Humane Society of the United States spokesperson told Chron reporter Carolyn...

Eggs produced in California have been free of salmonella for more than 10 years, according to a news release by the Association of California Egg Farmers. The release was distributed by PR Newswire in the wake of the recent recall of 500 million Iowa-produced eggs due to a salmonella outbreak.

The Association attributes the state egg industry's safety record to the voluntary California Egg Quality Assurance Program developed in 1995. The program, implemented by 95 percent of the state's egg producers, requires:

• Chicks and pullets be purchased from hatcheries...