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What is the Open Wing Alliance?

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How can we ensure global change for the animals? What is the OWA and what have they achieved.

Protesters standing in a line

The abuse of animals raised for food is a global issue. So we need to make sure we're tackling it on a global level. Collaborating with animal welfare organisations is the best way to do this, and that's the strength behind the Open Wing Alliance (OWA). But who are they? And what do they do?

What is the Open Wing Alliance?

The OWA is a global coalition of animal protection organisations united in a common goal: to end the abuse of chickens worldwide. It was initiated by The Humane League in 2016, when we were expanding internationally and cage-free work was beginning to gain momentum around the world. However, we quickly realised that we couldn’t and shouldn’t be doing this work alone.

There were many existing animal protection organisations working in other countries who already had networks in place, and were doing similar work to us. Cage-free commitments around the world were building up, which was extremely positive, but we realised that as individual organisations we were limited in our impact against huge companies. In order to target these corporate giants, we needed to be bigger and more powerful; a united global front for chickens.

The OWA’s strength and power lies in its diversity of member organisations, each with unique strengths that enable us to effectively march, together, toward our shared goal.

The OWA started with just a few member organisations and a dream: to create that global coalition strategically focused on freeing hens from cages, with the power to stand up against the world’s biggest corporations. It is now a coalition of over 100 organisations, spanning 67 countries around the world. Along with volunteers and supporters of these organisations, thousands of people worldwide contribute towards the OWA’s work and participate in global campaigns.

Why cage-free?

There are around 7.5 billion laying hens worldwide, and every day these hens suffer from the worst abuses on factory farms. Their environment is stressful, filthy, cramped, and devoid of anything related to a natural life. However, there are many different systems of egg farming, and we are working to eliminate the systems that cause the most suffering.

Despite huge success over the past few years, the current global cage-free population of laying hens is around 850 million, just 11% of the total farmed hen population. We still have a long way to go to free all hens from cages, but working together, the OWA has seen significant increases in cage-free commitments. As we grow, we expect this trend to grow too.

How does the OWA work?

As a global coalition, OWA organisations work together on strategy, corporate dialogue, and global campaigns. The OWA funds, trains, and coordinates animal welfare advocates around the world so we are united in our approach and asks. We are all connected through this impactful alliance and can ask for advice, and share information and resources with all members.

What are OWA's success so far?

To date, groups in the OWA have won 2,200+ corporate cage-free commitments, 100+ of which are truly global commitments, as well as 400+ broiler welfare commitments in Europe and North America.

A few of the biggest cage-free wins include Yum! Brands, RBI, and Hilton, the latter of which was won in just 24 hours after a coordinated campaign launch around the globe. Most recently we worked together to win cage-free commitments from two of the most well-known bakery brands in the world.

How you can help

We at The Humane League UK are extremely proud to be a part of the OWA, and we would love for you to join us. Support our mission by volunteering with us, or by joining thousands of activists around the world taking part in online campaigns by signing up to receive our emails.

Together we are changing the world for laying hens.

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