Judge tosses Trump administration's lawsuit over Michigan's cage-free egg production
A federal lawsuit by the Trump administration seeking to throttle Michigan's cage-free egg production rules was dismissed.
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan ended the litigation over Michigan's Hen Enclosure Law on Wednesday, the state attorney general's office said.
The lawsuit claimed that Michigan's law, which took effect Jan. 1, 2025, contributed to the high price of eggs for consumers and imposed "unnecessary red tape" on large-scale commercial egg producers. The federal government sought to declare the egg production law invalid, saying the federal Egg Products Inspection Act pre-empted the state's efforts. Federal officials also claimed that such laws contributed to the rising cost of eggs.
The state attorney general's office defended the State of Michigan in the case.
State officials said the rules had been in the works for 15 years before taking effect, and several other states, including Ohio, already had such laws.
U.S. District Court Judge Jane M. Beckering dismissed the federal challenge, saying the federal government failed to show it was harmed by the Hen Enclosure Law and therefore lacked standing.
"I am pleased the District Court dismissed the Trump administration's flawed assault on Michigan's authority to protect the health and welfare of Michigan residents, as well as the animals we rely on to feed our families," Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said. "This lawsuit was a thinly veiled attempt by the federal government to shift blame for higher costs at the grocery store from the President's own failed policies to state laws that protect animal welfare."
Prices had hit a record high in the U.S. during 2025 after an avian flu outbreak killed millions of egg-laying birds. The average price of a dozen eggs in the United States had remained well under $3 for years, but spiked in January 2023 to $4.80 and again in March 2025 to $6.22, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
The Department of Justice and more than a dozen states also reached a proposed settlement in July with three major producers to resolve claims that the companies coordinated efforts to push egg prices up between June 2022 and March 2025.
The above video originally aired on Jan. 23, 2026.
