http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-eggs-20120129,0,2454794.story
Karen Davis, president of United Poultry Concerns, writing as “chickenadvocate,” comments today:
It is incorrect to say that the proposed federal legislation would eliminate battery cages. Batteries consist of rows and tiers of identical
units; in this case the units are cages. The proposed legislation will enshrine battery cages, not eliminate them. Egg-laying hens will be
locked inside windowless buildings, crammed in cages stacked from the floor and lined up in long rows, just as they are now. Tiny furnishings,
including plastic strips, falsely called “nests,” are being prettified as “colonies” and
“enrichments.” This vocabulary makes people feel good, but it is bad for birds whose legs and wings are designed to run,
walk, perch and be physically active, not rot in cages.
After decades of humane efforts in the US and Europe to get hens out of cages, a law that ensures they’ll never get out is being hailed
as a victory for hens and “animal rights.” But it isn’t. If people knew the truth of the egg industry and how hens are
actually treated behind the scenes, they would be sickened. We do not need to eat their eggs to be healthy. Karen Davis, PhD, President, United
Poultry Concerns. www.upc-online.org
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Photo of "Colony" Cage by Jayme Fraser / The Oregonian
For more information about “enriched” battery cages, please see
“Enriched” Cages for Egg-Laying Hens in the US and EU
10 July 2010
For United Poultry Concerns' position on the proposed legislation, please see
Agreement Raises Hopes & Fears for Egg-Laying Hens: Our Perspective 10 July 2011
This and much more about egg-laying hens can be read on our “Battery” Hens page at
www.upc-online.org/battery_hens/.
