Supermarkets To Ban Sale Of Battery Eggs

Tue, 08 Jan 2008
 
Get the latest prices, codes, vouchers & deals fortnightly.
UK supermarkets are to begin banning or phasing out the sale of eggs from caged hens as consumer backlash over the impact of cheap food on animal welfare continues to grow.

Eggs from battery hens have already been removed from Marks and Spencer and Waitrose stores, while Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and the Co-op are expected to follow suit .

The move is likely to mean that shoppers will only be able to buy eggs from free range, barn and organic hens within the next three years from UK supermarkets .

Sainsbury’s said it expected to end the sale of all eggs from battery hens, which make up roughly a quarter of its egg sales, by the start of next year.

Morrisons said it planned to stop selling eggs from caged hens in its own brand eggs by 2010, while the Co-op is expected to announce a similar date for a complete switch to free range eggs .

Britain’s largest supermarket chains – Tesco and Asda – have not yet announced such plans, although Asda insists it is "working hard" to phase out the use of eggs from caged hens, while Tesco said it was reducing shelf space for eggs from caged hens.

The free range move coincides with a campaign by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, who promotes Sainsbury’s, to persuade consumers to demand better welfare for hens.

Link to this page

Copy and Paste the following HTML into your page.