Photo: f.x.l., Flickr
Some big news hit the hen house on Tuesday. California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed bill A.B. 1437 into law, which states that all whole eggs must come from birds that can "fully extend their limbs, lie down and spread their wings without touching each other or the sides of their enclosure," as the Humane Society of the United States describes it. In other words, when the law goes into full effect in 2015, the Golden State will be effectively cage free.
Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of HSUS, wrote in the Huffington Post that the new law will likely have an impact far beyond the California state line -- this being the eighth largest economy in the world, what happens in California rarely stays in California. "With 40 million consumers . . . it would be hard to overestimate the potential of this bill to change the way laying hens are treated throughout the United States," Pacelle pointed out.
So how much of a lifestyle change is this for hens? Let's define our terms. Cage free does not equal free range. According to the HSUS, cage-free hens are still confined by the thousands, indoors, and may still be debeaked and force-molted. Even so, life in battery cages is arguably worse, as the hens literally can not turn around or spread their wings -- ever.
Dr. Michael Appleby, an animal welfare scientist, wrote for the HSUS that in battery cages, "[h]ens are unable to engage in many of their natural behaviors and endure high levels of stress and frustration. Cage-free egg production, while not perfect, does not entail such inherent animal welfare disadvantages and is a very good step in the right direction for the egg industry."
Now that California has taken that step, keep your eye on other states to follow.
