Bill would require government to purchase meat only from humanely treated animals.

Bipartisan legislation that would require government meat buyers to take into account the conditions under which livestock were kept will die when the 109th Congress adjourns later this year, but could be revived in 2007. The proposal (HR 5557), which was introduced by Reps. Christopher Shays (RConn.) and Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), would require that those supplying food to the federal government--including the military, federal prisons, school lunches, and other programs--meet a basic set of welfare standards for farm animals.

A 2003 Gallup poll found that nearly two-thirds of Americans "support passing strict laws concerning the treatment of farm animals." And a 2003 Zogby poll found that nearly 70 percent of Americans find it "unacceptable" that farm animals have no federal protection from abuse while on the farm, and nearly three quarters believe that farms ought to be "inspected by government inspectors to ensure that regulations to protect animals from cruelty are being followed."

According to Shays, the proposal would not ban any current methods of production, but would have the federal government "lead by example, creating a small, but important, marketplace for producers who raise their animals in a more humane way."

"These modest standards mean that federal suppliers cannot engage in the most inhumane current industrial farming practices: intensive confinement in battery cages, gestation or veal crates, forced molting of laying hens through starvation, forced feeding for foie gras, hauling of downed animals to slaughter or leaving sick or injured animals to languish without treatment or humane euthanasia," said Shays.

Under the legislation, humane treatment would be defined as:

* adequate shelter that allows animals to stand up, lie down and extend their limbs without touching any part of their enclosure;

* daily access to food and water sufficient to maintain the animal's health; and

* adequate veterinary care, including prompt treatment of injuries or euthanasia for a sick or injured animal.

The bill does not mandate industry-wide compliance with these modest requirements, Shays said, only to those producers "who choose to do business with the federal government."

Both Shays and DeFazio are members of the Friends of Animals Caucus on Capitol Hill.