Lindenwood Valley Farmers is a Missouri business that raises ducks for slaughter. Among the products produced by Lindenwood Valley from the slaughtered ducks, Lindenwood Valley produces and sells foie gras. Lindenwood Valley sells foie gras throughout the United States. Lindenwood Valley breeds and raises specific hybrids of ducks that are bred for their capacity of ingestion and fat storage in their liver. To produce foie gras, Lindenwood Valley force feeds its ducks using a feeding tube, so that the ducks will consume more food than they would consume voluntarily. This process of forced feeding substantially increases the size of the ducks' livers. The enlarged livers are then used to produce foie gras, which is sold as a food delicacy by Lindenwood Valley directly to specialty food retailers and up-scale restaurants. In an effort to promote the humane treatment of animals, the Massachusetts legislature passed a statute in 2013 which outlaws the sale of any product in Massachusetts that results from the forced feeding of birds for the purpose of enlarging the birds' liver beyond normal size. The law also prohibits any person from force feeding a bird for the purpose of enlarging the bird's liver beyond normal size, or hiring another person to do so. The law is to take effect on January 1, 2014. Lindenwood Valley will lose substantial business if it is no longer able to sell foie gras within Massachusetts, which is one of Lindenwood Valley's largest markets for foie gras. Lindenwood Valley wants to file a lawsuit against the State of Massachusetts in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri and ask the U.S. District Court to enjoin the enforcement of the Massachusetts statute before it becomes effective on January 1, 2014. Lindenwood Valley believes the Massachusetts statute violates the U.S. Constitution by denying it due process of law. Lindenwood Valley also claims that the Massachusetts statute should be struck down because it violates the Commerce Clause. The Board of Directors of Lindenwood Valley has asked you to advise them on the strength of their claims for these alleged constitutional violations.
What advice do you give Lindenwood Valley?