Cordelia Britton
The European Parliament has supported making cages for farmed animals illegal across the European Union by 2027. Here’s what comes next.
The European Parliament voted overwhelmingly to phase out cages across the EU yesterday, in a huge win for millions of animals and campaigners.
The win has come after years of campaigning led by Compassion in World Farming, who secured 1.4 million signatures from animal lovers all across the EU for a European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI).
The ECI calls on the European Union to make cages for all farmed animals illegal by 2027.
The Parliament debated the issue yesterday, and then overwhelmingly voted in favour of the End the Cage Age Initiative. They have now urged the European Commission to adopt the resolution.
The EU Commission will now review the proposal and hopefully adopt a clear ban on cages, at which point it will become EU law.
The initiative covers all farmed animals, from egg-laying hens, to ducks and to rabbits. It’s the first successful ECI for farmed animals in history.
Our heartfelt thanks and congratulations go to the coalition of charities, scientists, politicians, businesses, citizens and more who put so much into achieving this, as well as all of our supporters who took action in support of the campaign.
With the UK having left the EU, the resulting law won’t apply here. Millions of hens are still kept in cages in the UK. So it will be vital for us to continue to fight to see the end of this cruel and outdated practice.
Sign up to hear from us and join the fight against cages.
