Retail sale of shelled eggs.

Existing law governing the regulation of eggs and egg products authorizes the Secretary of Food and Agriculture to adopt regulations relating to the preparation for market and marketing of shelled eggs that are determined to be reasonably necessary to carry out the purposes of these provisions, including to assure that healthful and wholesale eggs of known quality are sold in the state. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor to sell or contract for sale a shelled egg for human consumption in California if the seller knows or should have known that the egg is the product of an egg-laying hen that was confined on a farm or place that is not in compliance with specified animal care standards. This bill would provide that latter provisions do not prohibit the sale of a shelled egg that is the product of an egg-laying hen confined on a farm or place in accordance with the standards in a specified regulation adopted by the secretary.