International Cage-Free Equity Index
Images are representative of typical factory farm conditions.
Images are representative of typical factory farm conditions.
Most laying hens worldwide are confined to tiny, crowded cages without room to even spread their wings. Each hen suffers, on average, an estimated 11,207 hours of pain in her shortened life, from bone injuries and other ailments to not having access to a nest.
Cage confinement of laying hens is also associated with significantly higher rates of salmonella, raising serious food safety concerns for consumers.
As a global issue, companies are responsible for banning cruel confinement of hens in their supply chains. But when cage-free egg commitments don’t span the globe, the egg industry displaces animal cruelty by exporting cages from the Global North to the Global South…
…even though consumers in the Global South also reject animal cruelty, such as cramped cages for hens.1
96.3%
Brazil
96.7%
Chile
72.3%
China
71.9%
India
73.3%
Malaysia
77.9%
Nigeria
93.6%
Pakistan
77.1%
Philippines
73.4%
Sudan
77.7%
Thailand
The bad news?
Some companies remain silent on cage-free egg standards for hens and consumers in certain parts of the world, such as the Global South. As of July 31, 2023, these companies have not yet published a comprehensive global cage-free egg commitment with a clear timeframe
The good news?
Many companies have committed to ending the use of cages in their egg supply chains globally, as concerns for animal welfare and food safety do not end at the borders of Global North countries
The better news?
Transparent companies with cage-free pledges are reporting global progress on their shifts away from cages because their customers, their investors, and the public deserve transparency
The even better news?
Leading companies are reporting their global cage-free egg progress for all their regions of operation, as regional transparency is just as crucial in the Global South as it is in the Global North. These companies are equitably transparent
Images are representative of typical factory farm conditions.
Take Action
Concerned citizen of the world? Sign the petition urging decision-makers at companies falling behind to expand their cage-free egg commitments to include all hens and consumers and to equitably report progress on their cage-free pledges.
The International Cage-Free Equity Index is a project by Mercy For Animals in close partnership with these groups:
Company categorizations reflect published commitments and progress reporting as of July 31, 2023. Some franchisees or licensees have cage-free egg commitments that cover some but not all countries of operation. Images are representative of typical factory farm conditions.
1 In a study of consumer attitudes toward hen welfare around the world, most respondents in surveyed countries agreed that chickens used for eggs should not suffer.