Jamie Gittins
The Humane League UK, RSPCA, and the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation hosted MPs, celebrities and food industry representatives to show widespread support for an end to cages for laying hens.
Our campaign to end cages for hens has received a huge boost from a successful Parliamentary reception, in which the Government confirmed it would launch a consultation on banning cages for hens this year.
The reception, which took place on 30th March, demonstrated the breadth and strength of support for ending cages for hens. Currently, as many as 14 million chickens languish in cages across the UK, despite 76% of UK consumers considering the banning of cages to be a priority issue.
The reception was part of Beatrice’s Campaign to end cages for hens. The campaign is named after Beatrice, a hen who spent her first 18 months of life living in a cage. When she was rescued by our Animal Welfare Specialist Mia, much of her body was bare, suffering from severe feather loss due to the other birds repeatedly pecking her.
A consultation on ending cages for hens
Among the attendees at the reception was the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, George Eustice.
Speaking about so-called enriched cages which are currently still legal in the UK, George Eustice said:
“It was always recognised that that was really a stepping stone to something further, and moving beyond cages altogether.”
He confirmed that the Government would launch a consultation on banning cages for hens this year. This is an important step towards ensuring that hens are no longer kept in cruel, cramped cages in the UK.
Diverse support for ending cages
Alongside campaigners and politicians, there was vegan author and TV star Lucy Watson, media personality Kirsty Gallacher, TV veterinarian Marc Abraham and actor Peter Egan, as well as food industry representatives from Waitrose and Greggs.
Cordelia Britton, Head of Programs at The Humane League UK, said:
“It was exciting to see so many influential people gather to oppose cages for hens in this country. We have an ethical obligation to treat animals well and our diverse group of guests reflects the widespread public support for change. I hope this is the beginning of the end of barbaric cages for hens.”
Major momentum on cage-free
All major UK supermarkets have already committed to remove eggs from caged hens in their supply chains by 2025, and companies like Burger King have committed to do so for their global supply chains.
Switzerland, Luxembourg and Austria have already banned caging hens, while bans are on the way in Germany, Belgium, Czechia, and Slovakia. Seven US states have already phased out cage-egg production.
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