Possible makeover of U.S. egg industry

[Cheryl]

I just got this from the Humane Society. The organization and the United Egg Producers announced
an agreement which could result in a complete makeover of the U.S. egg industry. http://action.humanesociety.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=23541.0&dlv_id=27705

 

[Chickens_in_a_nutshell]

Epic! This method of farming is unsanitary and unfair to both people and animals. I wish that other factory farms had this option of labeling so the consumer would be better informed. Could it be possible in the future that our nation's food will be nearly a 100% sustainable?

Now I proceed to celebrate this current event with every happy smiley:

 

[catwalk]

Department of Agriculture regulations are also getting stricter. I know of several small egg producers who are considering getting out of the biz for those rules alone; if the Humane Society gets all of thier proposals passed, almost every egg operation will have to entirely dismantle and start over. The prices of all food products will skyrocket, and a lot of people will be out of a job.

I absolutely want these hens to be treated better, but treating the egg-producers like backyard pets will have a very bad impact on our economy.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

This isn't what you think it is. They are not necessarily taking the hens out of the cages, but are pushing for enriched cages with lower stocking rates and more amenities for the hens.

This will consolidate the egg industry even further. The UEP producers that are pushing this have the money for the new production systems. The small to mid-range producer that is still using old infrastructure will be driven out.

This method of farming is unsanitary and unfair to both people and animals.

Not necessarily. Cage systems are only as good as their managers. The modern systems have manure belts that remove the manure on a regular basis and finely tuned ventilation systems. They are not the filth ridden places that the animal rights groups would lead you to believe.

I do not support such systems, but most are not the horror show that the media portrays.​

 

[homesteadmomma]

Quote:
I agree. Our economy is already horrible, and I'm sure this will also be another huge disaster. While I agree that battery hens are treated horribly, the cost to treat them as backyard chickens would put a dozen eggs at $3-4 each if I had to guess, maybe more. I know how much I spend on food, coops, and runs for my pullets and they aren't even laying yet.

I do think they should have better rules/laws for the big egg producers, but within reason. There are far too many people that cannot afford to lose their jobs, and even more than can't afford to buy $4/ dz eggs, and even more that can't afford to keep their own chickens. It's sad that everything has a downfall.

 

[Judy]

duplicate: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=536608