Scientific evidence shows that battery cages cause immense physical and psychological suffering to egg laying hens. © Compassion in World Farming.
© Compassion in World Farming’s Good Egg Awards have proved to be a hugely successful tool to engage food companies and drive policy change.
In 2010/11, The Rufford Foundation provided a grant of £50,000 to Compassion in World Farming (CIWF).
Fighting for the 2012 Barren Battery Cage Ban
CIWF is the leading farm animal welfare charity, committed to campaigning against the suffering caused by factory farming methods. The barren battery cage is perhaps the most notorious example of the confinement and cruelty that typifies factory farming. This system of egg production causes extreme physical and psychological suffering as animals are crammed together into tiny wire cages, unable to even stretch their wings.
With the backing of The Rufford Foundation, CIWF is working to deliver a better future for millions of laying hens, free from the constrictions of the battery cage. In 1999, the EU agreed to ban barren battery cages for laying hens from 1st January 2012. CIWF is now engaged in a sustained campaign to ensure the ban comes into force as planned, despite considerable political and industry pressures to delay or dilute it.
The campaign aims to secure and retain political support for the ban through campaigning and lobbying, whilst driving demand for cage-free eggs by changing the purchasing practices of the food industry. The Rufford Foundation’s grant has funded partnership work with the food industry during 2010/11:
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Encouraging egg producers, retailers, food manufacturing companies and food service operators to go cage-free.
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Rewarding companies who demonstrate leadership via The Good Egg Awards. Twenty-seven million hens are set to benefit as a result of the 2010 award winners’ policies.
