What Does Cage Free Mean

May 14, 2021

Cage-free chickens can still be crammed together wing-to-wing in a giant indoor space -- sometimes even. WHAT DOES CAGE-FREE MEAN.

Eggs That Clear The Cages But Maybe Not The Conscience The New York Times

The part of the graphic that estimates 15 square feet as the Prop 2 requirement is incorrect.

What does cage free mean. Commercial broiler farms raise chickens in large well-ventilated climate controlled barns where theyre protected from the elements predators and disease. What does the cage-free label mean. The hens may still live in over-crowded and unhealthful conditions.

In a caged housing system each hen is typically given enough space to stand upright but not enough space to turn around move around or stretch her wings. Commercial broiler farms raise chickens in large well-ventilated climate controlled barns where theyre protected from the elements predators and disease. Cage-free refers to factory farming environments where chickens used in egg productionknown as layer hensare held in open indoor spaces instead of within small cages.

Free range gives no indication of the outdoor conditions. On an egg carton cage free means that the hens that laid the eggs were not raised in caged housing systems which is how the vast majority of laying hens in the US. They are still in an enclosed facility but with unlimited access to food and fresh water.

Cage free means just that. These cage-free facilities which are multi-level allow the birds to move freely within the barn. Cage-free is the squirrelliest of the claims because although it sounds good it still leaves birds open to a world of other inhumane treatment.

But it does not mean they are not kept in enclosures. They can freely roam a building room. Cage-free a term regulated by the USDA means that the eggs come from hens that put simply arent caged.

Cage Free This term simply indicates that animals were not kept in cages. The short answer is that the term cage-free means the birds were not raised in battery cages. Then the USDA gets involved and producers need to comply with the following.

The only stipulation a farmer has to agree to in order to label something cage free is to remove the cage idea from the equation. You might see cage free labels on packaged chicken meat that you purchase at the store. DxE Open Rescue rescues Ella from cage-free hell.

They have room to move about the house access food and water 24 hours a day and interact. The graphic is from The San Francisco Chronicle 2016 article What is does cage-free mean exactly about Proposition 2 proposed and approved in 2008. The only stipulation a farmer has to agree to in order to label something cage free is to remove the cage idea from the equation.

Eggs packed in USDA grademarked consumer packages labeled as cage free must be produced by hens housed in a building room or enclosed area that allows for unlimited access to food water and provides the freedom to roam within the area during the laying cycle. Free Range This term has been approved by the USDA for animals that were raised in a sheltered facility with unlimited access to food water and access to the outdoors. Most people would reasonably assume cage-free to mean no cages But the term is not backed by any regulated USDA or FDA standards free range is defined by the USDA.

However no chicken you buy is raised in a cage. You might see cage free labels on packaged chicken meat that you purchase at the store. Most cage-free hens are raised indoors in a relatively new type of production facility known as an aviary housing system Xin explains.

The USDA notes that eggs packed in USDA grademarked consumer packages labeled as cage-free are laid by hens that are able to roam vertically. Donate to and become a member of Direct Action Everywhere. However no chicken you buy is raised in a cage.

It does not necessarily mean the animal actually went outside only that there was a door to the outside. The free-range label requires that the hens be allowed outside. So what does cage-free actually mean.

Cage-free represents an increased quality of life for hens as compared with those held in cages. But heres a bit more context on this claim. Our hens are NEVER caged so this isnt even a factor for Organic Valley hens.

Free-Range Cage-free means the hens were allowed to wander freely but that wandering can be limited to a hen house.

What Are Cage Free Eggs