RMJfA- From the Senior Director of Factory Farming at HSUS

I know this is controversial amongst many animal liberationists, but this is historic for our movement, regardless.
Lisa

For years we've been clashing with the United Egg Producers (UEP) over the treatment of laying hens. If someone had told me that we'd be doing a joint press conference with the UEP in 2011, I'd have thought they'd eaten some bad egg replacer. But indeed, that's exactly what's happening right now.

I'm sitting at our joint press conference in DC where we're announcing that a truly historic agreement has been reached in which both the UEP and HSUS will endorse federal legislation intended to improve the treatment of all of the 280 million laying hens used in the US each year.

To put this in perspective, consider these facts:

·         * There's currently no federal law relating to chickens used for food.

·         * There's currently no federal law relating to on-farm treatment of any farm animal.

·         * The Congress hasn't enacted a farm animal welfare measure in more than 30 years.

That may all be changing though, as the bill that both the egg industry and we will endorse would:

·         require the nationwide elimination of barren battery cages—small, cramped, cages that nearly immobilize more than 90 percent of laying hens today;

·         * require phased in construction of new hen housing systems that provide each hen nearly double the amount of space they're currently  provided;

·         * require environmental enrichments  so  birds can engage in important natural behaviors currently denied to them in barren cages, such as perches, nesting boxes, and scratching areas;

·         * mandate labeling on all egg cartons nationwide to inform consumers of the method used to produce the eggs, such as "eggs from caged hens" or "eggs from cage-free hens;"

·         * prohibit forced molting through starvation—an inhumane practice which is inflicted on tens of millions of hens each year and which involves withholding all food from birds for up to two weeks in order to manipulate the laying cycle;

·         * prohibit excessive ammonia levels in henhouses—a common problem in the industry that is harmful to both hens and egg industry workers; 

·         * prohibit the sale of all eggs and egg products nationwide that don't meet these requirements.

·         * some of the provisions will be implemented nearly immediately after enactment, such as those relating to molting, ammonia, and euthanasia, and others after just a few years, including labeling and the requirement that all birds will have to have at least 67 square inches of space each. (Currently, approximately 50 million laying hens are confined at only 48 square inches each.)

The agreement doesn't ensure cage-free conditions, which would of course be preferable, but it's a remarkable step forward for animals who have for so long been so ignored and so abused.

And it's been made possible only because of the tireless work of everyone involved in campaigns like the ballot measures in California, Ohio, Washington, and Oregon. Those efforts truly helped the egg industry see the writing on the wall: barren battery cages must go.

It reminds me of what Gandhi said: "A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history."  Indeed.

Sorry for the much-longer email than normal, but I wanted to ensure you had the facts about this agreement as they're being announced.

Feel free to email with any questions.

Thanks,
Paul

Paul Shapiro
Senior Director, Farm Animal Protection
The Humane Society of the United States
Follow at http://twitter.com/pshapiro

P.S. If you dislike getting live updates from improbable animal protection press conferences, you can unsub just by asking.

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Lisa Shapiro

allthingsvegan.com

"One of the greatest opportunities to live our values – or betray them – lies in the food we put on our plates." – Jonathan Safran Foer

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