Canada to Ban Gestation Crates Nationwide By 2014

Canada’s National Farm Animal Care Council recently drafted a revised version of the current Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Pigs that would make confining pregnant sows in gestation crates illegal, reports The Wall Street Journal. While the proposal prohibits the use of gestation crates by any new or renovated farms built after July 2014, the phase out period for current gestation crate use is set for 2024. The revised code came after eight major Canadian suppliers, including Walmart and Costco, denounced the use of gestation crates. “HSI Canada welcomes the National Farm Animal Care Council’s recognition that the lifelong confinement of pigs in tiny crates must end in Canada’s pork industry,” declares Humane Society International Canada’s campaigner Sayara Thurston.