Industry Comes to the Table

By Gene

Earlier this month, in an historic compromise between the Humane Society of the U.S. (HSUS) and the United Egg Producers (UEP), citizens’ initiatives in the states of Washington and Oregon were put on hold in exchange for a commitment from UEP to work jointly with HSUS in support of a federal law to prohibit the cruel confinement of egg laying hens in barren battery cages. Although the UEP has defended battery cages for years, asserting that they promote animal welfare and food safety, the trade organization has come to recognize that the use of these cages is outside the bounds of acceptable conduct in our society.

The vast majority of citizens believe that farm animals deserve to be treated with respect, and they oppose commonly employed factory farming practices. With the UEP agreement, the egg industry has joined the pork industry and the veal industry, which have announced plans to phase out gestation crates and veal crates, respectively. Farm Sanctuary and our colleagues have exposed and challenged these inhumane confinement systems for decades, and we’re finally seeing progress, especially over the past ten years.

The UEP agreement is particularly important in that it calls for federal legislation. This will be the first nationwide law to address the welfare of animals on farms, and it could lead to other federal legislation addressing farmed animal welfare in the future, a possibility that has other industry groups concerned.

The UEP/HSUS agreement goes beyond just cage size and conformation. It will also require that eggs be labeled according to how the hens who laid them are housed, which will remind consumers that their eggs come from real, living animals and will help increase awareness about the consequences of their food choices. Everybody, except proponents of the factory farming industry, benefits when citizens make more informed and conscientious food choices, opting for foods that are more healthful, humane and environmentally sustainable.

Change occurs through the adoption of new laws and policies, like the HSUS/UEP agreement, and through consumer choices, which collectively define market trends. On both fronts, we are beginning to see positive signs. Still, there is an awful long way to go, and it is absolutely crucial that we keep pushing for improvements. Stay tuned to help enact the HSUS/UEP measure in Washington, DC, in the near future. In the meantime, you can vote with your dollars every day by choosing to eat plant foods instead of animal foods.

Comments

[Lorraine Ouellette]

WOOOOHOOOO!
WAY TO GO!
I AM AN AVID SUPPORTER OF FARM SANCTUARY. THANK YOU THANK YOU FOR THE HARD WORK YOU DO ON BEHALF OF THE ANIMALS!
SINCERELY,
LORRAINE

[Victoria Vanden]

This is wonderful news! I hope the bill addresses just how much space is to be alloted per hen in order to prevent the UEP from circumventing the spirit of the law by jamming as many hens as they can onto a barn floor and creating another miserable situation.

[Helen Ostrander]

We are beginning to move in the right direction for humanely treating animals in the farming industry. Hopefully we will continue to show compassion in other areas of animal welfare that is being confronted. I still believe that humans still have to continue development to become a truly compassionate species.

[Eileen Murphy47]

I am happy that people are becoming more aware and are willing to make the lives of farm animals more tolerable. Hopefully in the future factory farming will be a thing of the past. All animals great and small should be treated with respect. They are a part of nature as we are. Their lives are short and perhaps something can be done to make their short lives a little joyful. Maybe they can see the sun and spread their wings. They should not be confined to filthy cages where their natural intincts are completely thwarted.

[Rena]

I guess there will be many years between the good intention and the enactment of a law. In the meantime, I believe my dollar is a most persuasive argument - to buy eggs only from free range chickens or even better staying away from eggs all together.

[Elena Kondracki]

THANK YOU!!!!

[Suzanne]

This is a step in the right direction. However, no animal should ever be forced to reside in a "confinement" building. Animals belong outside, with shelter available at their desire. Until we decide that animals are NOT ours to eat, or for use as our clothing, furniture, entertainment or for our profit or to experiment on, their lives will still be at risk for abuse, neglect or slaughter. Every animal, if given a chance, will fight for it's life. Our choices in diet, dress, and lifestyle affect millions of animals every year. We must never grow complacent when it comes to fighting for animals.

[Nancy Tuscano]

There is hope after all, I'm a prayer warrior for the children and the animals of our planet. Children and animals can not control their environment, and their voices go unheard. We are the voice for them. Prayer works, he opens the doors for the animal activists and soften the hearts of those committed to money only. I'm so happy for those of us who care for the helpless; now let's not stop here. Have you seen what is done in Korea? the cruelty is unbearable.

[Sharon Veronica]

YAY!!!! So HAPPY for all the animals! So PROUD of all the humans who care! HOORAY!!! :)

[J. Valencia]

It's amazing that there are still a great number of people in the U.S. who just don't care where their eggs come from...in thier minds an egg from a caged hen is just the same as one that wasn't laid in a cage. In most instances most people don't even stop to think about it...especially when they're at a restaurant, bakery, or any place that purchases a great number of eggs. None-the-less any victory that helps one of the most abused animals on earth gain it's health, piece of mind, and it's freedom, is a great vicotry! Keep up the great work!

[D Allen]

every victory counts, every life, every hen... thank you Farm Sanct., Humane Soc., and all who worked for this great stride forward!

[Sherry Zitter, maynard MA]

Gene, this is incredible progress! And so sad that it is... Animals should not have to be defended for their basic rights to touch and be touched, nurture and be nurtured, but since they must at this point in history, your work is truly historic. may this victory lead to a breakthrough in all human consciousness to understand that we animal creatures are all connected souls and all deserve to be free.