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Leading airline caterer LSG Group just joined the growing list of companies that have pledged to ban cages in their global operations!
LSG Group serves more than 130 million meals a year at more than 150 locations worldwide, so the company’s pledge will not only positively impact hens at egg farms but advance animal welfare across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, North America, South America, and Oceania. Zoë Sigle, senior global corporate engagement manager at Mercy For Animals, stated:
LSG Group is charting an influential path forward by banning cages for laying hens in its global egg supply chain and even investigating egg alternatives to build supply-chain resiliency.
LSG Group joins other top airline caterers, including Gate Group and Newrest, in pledging to phase cages out of their global egg supply chains by 2025. Airlines themselves, such as Hawaiian Airlines, are also committing to cage-free eggs, and some airlines, including JetBlue, have already fulfilled their cage-free commitments.
Today, most laying hens worldwide are confined to crowded “battery cages” without room to even spread their wings. Battery cages are metal wire cages that each confine up to 10 hens. According to the Animal Welfare Footprint Project, each caged hen suffers, on average, an estimated 11,207 hours of pain in her shortened life, from lack of nesting space and materials to broken bones, other serious injuries, and severe illness.
Corporate cage-free egg commitments recognize consumer concern for laying hens and their interest in ending cruel confinement in the egg industry. Progress reporting and implementation of these public commitments are crucial for ensuring consumer trust. Mercy For Animals guides food companies around the world in reducing animal suffering by adding meaningful animal welfare standards to their corporate procurement policies.
If you are interested in making even more global progress for hens, check the International Cage-Free Equity Index—urge companies with different animal welfare standards for different parts of the world to do better.