Multinational giant commits to cage-free eggs

One of the world’s largest consumer good companies, Unilever, has announced plans to source 100% cage-free eggs worldwide by 2025. The updated timeline for its global commitment is in addition to Unilever’s existing policy to transition their European and North American supply chains to cage-free by 2020. This position statement is part of an ever-growing worldwide movement to free hens from cages.

“Over the last year, we’ve seen a huge swell of companies committing to go cage-egg free, now including all of New Zealand’s major supermarkets,” says campaigns director, Mandy Carter. “Companies all across the food industry, from manufacture to service, are listening to demands from their customers and helping to eliminate the very worst practices in factory farming.”

By law, conventional battery cages have to be removed by New Zealand egg producers by 2022. However, the egg industry was set to replace these cages with equally cruel colony cages. Hens are crammed into wire cages with a space only about the size of a magazine to live their entire lives. Both battery and colony cages prevent hens from exercising many of their natural behaviours, including fully stretching their wings and dust bathing.

Other manufacture companies present in New Zealand who are already cage-egg free or have named a future phase-out date include Pepsico, Mondelez, Kellogg’s, Heinz-Kraft, Nestle and General Mills.

SAFE is a member organisation of global coalition, the Open Wing Alliance, campaigning to end the cage age for hens. “We vow to continue campaigning for hens until all cages are consigned to the history books,” says Ms Carter.

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