Some 140,000 hens will remain caged following Farmfoods’ decision to drop a commitment to go cage-free.
The budget food chain is the only UK supermarket to make such a U-turn, according to The Humane League, a campaign group.
“Farmfoods has signalled to shoppers that it cares less about animal cruelty than any of its competitors,” said Claire Williams, campaign manager at The Humane League.
The move follows Iceland’s U-turn earlier in the year – the supermarket ditched and then reinstated its commitment to stop using eggs from caged hens.
All other major food retail brands in the UK are either on track to meet their 2025 commitment or are already 100% cage-free for eggs, the campaign group explained. Co-op, Sainsbury’s, M&S, and Waitrose have all met their cage-free commitments. At Waitrose, all chicken reared for meat now meets ‘Better Chicken Commitment’ standards.
An estimated 7 million hens are still thought to be reared in cages across the UK. Cages prevent hens them from fully performing key behaviours such as dust-bathing, perching, roosting, and wing-flapping. Enriched cages are also cramped, crowded, and dimly lit, according to animal welfare groups.
Farmfoods said of its decision: “We are unable to secure supply of sufficient volume of non-cage eggs to meet consumer demand at an acceptable cost to ensure choice for all consumers. We believe in offering everyday great value and are unwilling to deny customers access to the good value, nutritious food provided by eggs laid by caged hens.”
The Humane League noted that the price of eggs from caged birds sold in Farmfoods is on a par with the free-range option at Aldi.
