Governments must stand up for hen welfare

01.11.11

We warn that time is running out to protect shoppers from illegal eggs which will not meet minimum welfare standards.

European Union member states agreed back in 1999 to outlaw keeping hens in conventional battery cages by 1 January 2012.

All producers in the UK are expected to be ready for the new law but, despite having more than 12 years to change, about a third of cage eggs from elsewhere in Europe are not expected to come from systems that comply with the new legislation. This  means about 84 million hens will still be kept in illegal conventional battery cages.

Today, (Tuesday, 1 November) with just two months until the change in law, we are calling on Defra, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and the Welsh government to ensure importers and food manufacturers have robust traceability processes in place and set up a rigorous checking mechanism to ensure only legal eggs and egg products are imported.

Don't put 'illegal eggs' in our shops

Alice Clark, senior scientific officer at the RSPCA, said:

Defra and the Welsh government need to take decisive and tough action to stop any illegal eggs entering into the UK from elsewhere in Europe and undermining this important legislation advance in animal welfare.

If nothing is done to stop these illegal eggs coming in the UK it could be seen as rewarding producers who are still using cruel conventional battery cages.

There is a real danger that shoppers will unwittingly buy illegal eggs, which will not even meet minimum welfare standards.

It will be particularly difficult to trace illegal eggs when they've been used as ingredients in foods such as ready meals, sandwiches, cakes and Yorkshire puddings, where they don't have to be labelled with production system or country of origin.

The RSPCA has been campaigning for more than three decades to end the use of cages and this new legislation is a step in the right direction, but time is running out to take action to protect shoppers from illegal eggs.

The Welfare of Laying Hens Directive outlaws the use of conventional battery cages in favour of other systems such as free-range and barn but does still allow so-called 'enriched' battery cages which although they have slightly more space, a scratching area, nesting area and perch, still provide less usable space than an A4 sheet of paper for each hen.

'Enriched' cages still impose a severe restriction and do not allow the birds to carry out all their natural behaviours like dustbathing and foraging properly.

We do not believe hens should be kept in cages at all and have been very pleased to see demand for eggs from barn, free-range and organic systems rising significantly since the 1990s.

How can you help?

We encourage shoppers to buy eggs from cage-free hens, such as barn, free-range and organic, and if they have a Freedom Food logo on the box it means they come from farms inspected to the RSPCA's strict welfare standards.

Eggs as ingredients

Foods such as cakes or mayonnaise made with free-range eggs will often be clearly advertised with the information on the packaging or in the ingredients list.

Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Marks & Spencer and The Co-operative use free range eggs in their own brand products or shoppers can look for Extra Special from Asda, The Best from Morrisons and The Finest range from Tesco.

Find out more 

• Find out more about our campaign against cages, or how to contact politicians, visit Give animals a voice.
   
• Read about our work on promoting the welfare of laying hens.