September 2, 2008 - Campaign Against Battery Cages Continues to Soar
Ottawa, ON – CNW
The new school year has only just begun, and already, two more Canadian universities are improving their test scores when it comes to animal welfare.
Chartwells — a division of Compass Group Canada, the largest food service provider in the country – has announced that starting this September, the University of Ottawa and McGill University will have a cage-free shell egg policy in campus food facilities. Ottawa and McGill join nine other Canadian post-secondary institutions that have made similar changes to move away from using eggs from hens confined in cruel and inhumane battery cages.
Approximately 98 percent of Canada’s 26 million egg-laying hens are confined in cages so small the hens can’t even spread their wings. They’re unable to engage in many of their most important natural behaviours including walking, perching, dust bathing, laying eggs in a nest, and even standing on solid ground. Each hen is given less space than a single sheet of letter-sized paper to live for her entire life.
A key focus of the Vancouver Humane Society’s work with its Chicken OUT! project is working with major corporate egg buyers to move away from using eggs from caged hens. “Consumers are increasingly demanding that corporations improve the lives of animals within their supply chain.” said Leanne McConnachie, Director of Farm Animal Programs for the Vancouver Humane Society. “The decision by Chartwells and the Universities of McGill and Ottawa to purchase and serve only cage-free shell eggs is an example of the kind of socially responsible policy that others in the food industry should follow in order to improve the welfare of animals raised in food production. As demand for improved welfare grows, the egg industry will find a way to meet that demand.”
In switching to cage free shell eggs, these universities are in good company. Humane Society International and its counterpart, The Humane Society of the United States, have helped convince more than 350 North American schools to greatly reduce or eliminate their use of eggs from caged hens. “The movement to stop buying eggs produced in cruel battery cage facilities is reaching a critical mass," said Bruce Passmore, Director of Outreach for Humane Society International/Canada. "We applaud Compass Group Canada and these universities for stopping some of the worst cruelty to farm animals by getting hens out of cages."
While cage-free does not mean cruelty-free, cage-free hens generally have at least 250-300 percent more space per bird and are able to engage in more of their natural behaviors than are caged hens. Cage-free hens may not always be able to go outside, but they are able to walk, spread their wings, and lay their eggs in nests—all behaviors permanently denied to hens confined in battery cages.
Contact
Leanne McConnachie: Vancouver Humane Society: (c) 604-340-3979 (o) 604-266-9744
Rebecca Aldworth: Humane Society International/Canada (c) 514-575-6797 (o) 515-395-2914
Laurie Brager: Compass Group Canada: (c) 647-262-7927 (o) 905-568-4636 x 433
