VICTORY! GOLDEN ARCHES GO FREE RANGE!

After years of public pressure campaigns, protests and most recently discussions directly with McDonald's representatives over their use of caged eggs, McDonald's New Zealand has announced it will stop using eggs from caged hens.

McDonald's announced this week all of its 19 Christchurch and Dunedin stores will no longer use battery eggs as a first step. This welcome news makes McDonald's the first fast-food retailer in Australasia to move away from caged eggs.

SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek says SAFE has long pressured the country's largest fast-food retailer to go cage free, so applauds the move. "The decision by McDonald's New Zealand to stop using caged eggs means that thousands of hens will no longer suffer inside cruel battery cages," says Hans.

"SAFE welcomes this important first step taken by McDonald's and we are now urging them to extend this scheme to all of their restaurants nationwide," says Hans. "SAFE is pleased to see the country's leading fast-food retailer responding to growing public concern about the treatment of caged hens. Battery hens suffer unimaginable stress from being kept inside small, cramped cages. These cages do not allow the hens to express any of their normal behaviour and therefore breach New Zealand's animal welfare legislation."

SAFE says the announcement is a significant breakthrough in the campaign for improved conditions for egg-laying hens.

"McDonald's decision to move away from eggs from chickens in battery hen cages will certainly put pressure on other fast-food retailers to adopt similar cage free, therefore less cruel, standards," says Mr Kriek.

Mr Kriek also expects McDonald's decision will influence next year's review of the welfare code for layer hens. "The use of free-range eggs by a low-cost restaurant chain such as McDonald's sends a clear message to the Government that battery hen farming is no longer socially acceptable and that the time has come to ban these cruel systems outright."

"Five years ago I was protesting outside McDonald's with fellow SAFE supporters to highlight to McDonald's that battery hen farming was cruel.  I am delighted that our efforts have finally seen a positive result," says Hans. (see below)

View TV3 story. Click here.

SAFE DEMANDS McDONALD'S STOPS USING CRUEL EGGS

SAFE has enlisted the help of Hetty the battery hen to confront McDonald's over the use of caged eggs.

Hetty visited McDonald's Merivale outlet in Christchurch accompanied by SAFE demonstrators to explain to the manager what life is really like for New Zealand's 2.8 million battery hens.

"McDonald's has outlets in almost all centres in New Zealand. We want them to show some responsibility and use their influence to improve the lives of New Zealand's long suffering battery hens," says Mr Kriek, SAFE campaign director.

SAFE LODGES COMPLAINT OVER FALSE ADVERTISING

SAFE has lodged a formal complaint with the Advertising Standards Complaints Board regarding McDonald's recent newspaper advertisement claiming that they only ever use 'Farm Fresh' eggs.

"The term ‘Farm Fresh' misleads consumers into believing that the eggs they consume are free range, where in fact these eggs are produced under cruel battery cage conditions."

"There is widespread confusion about what ‘Farm Fresh' really means. An Australian study of egg consumers found two out of three egg buyers were unaware of the true nature of the eggs they were buying, with one third believing (wrongly) that ‘Farm Fresh' meant free to roam."

"For the average New Zealander the term ‘Farm Fresh' has connotations of the outdoors, such as fresh air and green pastures, rather than the industrial sheds confining tens of thousands of hens in small wire cages. Clearly this term is used to divert attention away from the rather unpalatable reality."

"SAFE is calling on McDonald's and other food retailers such as supermarkets and restaurants to be honest about the true origins of their eggs. That way, those opposed to the battery cage system no longer inadvertently buy a product they consider cruel and inhumane."

Given the huge public aversion to the battery cage SAFE believes that the continued use of misleading claims such as ‘Farm Fresh' will undermine public confidence in the integrity of food retailers. SAFE therefore wants to see the Advertising Standards Complaints Board set a precedent by taking immediate action and forcing McDonald's to withdraw their deceptive advertisement.