Over the past two decades, numerous US states have implemented far-reaching animal welfare laws and banned the caging of laying hens, sows and veal calves. Researcher Jasmin Z?llmer from Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin (HU) has analysed the most important success factors for this "race to the top" of animal welfare standards in the USA. In a qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) of 79 legislative initiatives since 2000, the researcher identified two key routes to higher standards: referendums and the extension of domestic regulations to imports. In the USA, for example, all referendums in favour of greater animal welfare in recent decades were successful and were able to directly enforce stricter laws regardless of political majorities.
Import regulations were a second key factor: They ensure that stricter standards also apply to products from other US states. "The ability to apply stricter standards to imports in the US domestic market is a decisive lever. This allows domestic producers to remain competitive despite stricter requirements. This reduces resistance and strengthens the political enforceability of ambitious regulations," explains Jasmin Z?llmer.
In 2018, for example, California banned the keeping of sows in crates - even for imported meat. States such as Iowa, the largest pig producer in the USA, must now comply with the Californian regulations in order to retain access to the attractive market of 40 million inhabitants. Import regulations can therefore also have an impact on legislation in other states and trigger a "race to the top".
Single market rules in integrated markets crucial for policy-making in member states
Within the European Union, such import regulation would be almost inconceivable. The free movement of goods is interpreted much more strictly here. It is therefore much more difficult for individual EU member states to implement ambitious animal welfare laws. Jasmin Z?llmer and Professor Harald Grethe from the Albrecht-Thaer-Institut at the HU showed this in an earlier publication.
Jasmin Z?llmer summarises the differences between the two largest domestic markets: "The USA offers its states significantly greater leeway in policy-making than the EU - this has a positive effect on the standards in the individual states. While we often experience a kind of 'policy standstill' in the member states of the EU due to the strict interpretation of the free movement of goods - sometimes even deregulation, because higher standards are usually accompanied by a major loss of competitiveness - we see exactly the opposite in the USA: the possibility of applying the same standard to imports contributes significantly to standards being raised in the first place."
About the author
Jasmin Z?llmer is a doctoral student in the International Agricultural Trade and Development group at the Daniel Thaer-Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences at Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin. Her research focus is on policy-making in integrated markets, in particular on European integration, the free movement of goods and its effects on the ability of member states to act. Z?llmer conducts comparative research on the common market in the USA. Jasmin Z?llmer uses various methods in her research, including comparative policy analysis, elite interviews, discourse analysis and Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA). From 2020 to 2024, Jasmin Z?llmer was a member of the Animal Welfare Commission at the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
Further information
Z?llmer, J. (2025). Race to the top of farm animal welfare policies in US states: What can explain the new development? A qualitative comparative analysis. Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis: Research and Practice, 1-19
Z?llmer, J., Grethe, H. (2024). Enabling free movement but restricting domestic policy space? The price of mutual recognition European Policy Analysis, 1-32, in "European Policy Analysis"
Contact
Jasmin Z?llmer
Daniel Thaer-Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences at Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin
Phone: +49 176 884 71854
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