Battery Egg Farming
Cages
Battery farming of eggs - involving the caging of 18 million hens every year (1) - is one of the cruellest practices in UK farming. Hens in conventional battery cages cannot properly stretch or flap their wings, exercise, turn around easily or move away from other birds when they want to. They are also prevented from perching, dustbathing or laying eggs in a separate nest. Preventing hens from performing these important natural behaviours often causes frustration and suffering:
- severe restriction on movement causes brittle bones
- severe restriction on most normal behaviours leads to frustration and abnormal behaviours
- inability to escape aggression from other birds if this occurs
- damage to the feet from standing on the thin wire sloping floor
Battery egg production is the only UK farming system that imposes such a severe degree of confinement on a large number of farm animals for their entire productive lives. Current EU plans to replace conventional battery cages with 'enriched' battery cages by 2012 fail to tackle these serious problems. 'Enriched' battery cages share many of the serious welfare problems common to the conventional battery cage as they still severely restrict hens’ movement and do not properly cater for the birds’ behavioural or physical needs. For example, research has shown that the scratching area provided in these cages does not allow the birds to properly perform foraging or dustbathing behaviours.
‘Enriched’ cages have slightly higher minimum space requirements but this is still less floor area than an A4 sheet of paper. Each cage can house from less than 10 up to 60 or more hens and provides a tiny nest box, a perch and litter for dust bathing, all of which will be woefully inadequate in such claustrophobic conditions. The hens will still be unable to turn or to flap their wings, and competition for the nest box is likely to lead to aggression. ‘Enriched’ cages are merely glorified battery cages. (2)
All cages - whether traditional battery or so-called 'enriched' - are inherently cruel and cause laying hens to suffer throughout their lives. A MORI poll revealed an overwhelming 86 percent of people think battery cage systems are cruel, and 78 per cent believe the government should ban them now, as a priority. The EU proposals are minimum standards, and member states are free to implement higher standards in national law. Germany has unilaterally decided to ban all conventional and ‘enriched’ battery cages by 2012. If Germany can take a lead, why can't Britain?
Debeaking or beak-trimming
Debeaking or ‘beak-trimming’ involves cutting off around a third of a chicken’s beak with a red-hot blade or an infra-red beam. A serious and painful mutilation, beak trimming is used to control damaging pecking which is caused by factors such as inappropriate husbandry systems and the management or breed of the hen.
Beak trimming of laying hens is already prohibited in countries like Finland, Sweden and Norway, and was due to be banned in Britain in January 2011. Sadly, the Government has recently decided to postpone the ban, thus reversing one of their most significant animal welfare measures. This has happened despite farmers being given nine years to phase-out this painful mutilation. The egg industry has primarily used the phase out period to lobby against the ban rather than prepare for keeping hens without beak trimming. (3)
The scientific literature shows that the correct way to prevent feather pecking and cannibalism is not to beak trim the birds, but to keep them in good conditions - in particular to provide opportunities for them to forage, ground-peck and dustbathe - and to select for birds that are less prone to feather pecking and cannibalism.
Some are arguing that the use of infra-red beak trimming, rather than using a red hot knife, should be permitted. However, studies have concluded that beak trimming results in acute pain whether it is performed with the hot-blade or infra-red procedures. In addition, even the advisory committee which recommends delaying the ban admits that that infra-red trimming causes concerns because of trauma to the bird during the procedure; loss of integrity of a living animal by the removal of part of its beak; and loss of a sensory tool. The beak is a key sensory organ for hens.
Do you support a full ban on all battery cages for egg laying hens in 2012 and the scheduled prohibition of de-beaking in 2011?
YES / NO
REFERENCES:
- The late David Taylor MP, quoted in www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/briefings/snsc-01367.pdf
- Chris Mullin, quoted in www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/briefings/snsc-01367.pdf
- Peter Stevenson, CIWF Chief Policy Advisor. See www.ciwf.org.uk...
FURTHER INFO:
See links above, plus
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