why do they still exist 30 million caged laying hens in Spain? Overcrowding conditions not only imply animal suffering but also the transmission of enfermedades to humans. What role does the European Union play in this? Find out why this cruel practice has not yet been banned.
What happens to laying hens in Spain?
More than 30 million chickens live poorly in cages in Spain. It is a harsh reality derived from the search for maximum benefit at minimum cost. Thus, millions of animals suffer great physical and mental stress in intensive farms. The sad thing is that it is 80% of the hens in Spain. However, the European Union She is determined to put an end to this situation.
Concern for animal welfare has grown over the years. Thus, every day it is more frequent to look at the labeled of the eggs. Each one has a stamp that begins with a number. 0 for "ecological" y 1 for jackets with outdoor access. 2 for the chickens floor raised on large ships and 3 for caged.
The concern is such that companies are responsible for highlighting the well-being of the hens when appropriate. It is an added value and distributors know it. Thus LIDL stopped selling eggs from caged laying hens in 2018. Also, the numbers indicate a fairly rapid change. In 2016 only 7% of the hens lived outside the cages. This percentage grew to 23% in 2020.
The slow European bureaucracy
Animal welfare is a concern of the European Commission. In fact, it is part of the campaign "From farm to table«although it is not without controversy. It was just in 2018 that LIDL's decision coincided with a civil society campaign. The Compassion in World Farming organization launched the initiative End the Cage Age. almost joined 200 groups different and signed more than million and a half of people from Europe.
Thus, the European Parliament He admitted the proposal for processing and approved it. As a consequence, the gigantic and slow bureaucracy of the Commission was launched. For this reason, in 2021 this body set out to write a proposal for 2022. The ultimate goal of this is to eliminate the cages in which more or less 300 million hens live to 2027. Nine years after the campaign and the vote!
However, there is not that much left for 2027. That is why companies need to adapt. The transition to a more productive model sustainable financing model and with less suffering has begun. Now all you have to do is speed it up. In fact, in some countries cages for laying hens. This is the case of Austria, Sweden y Switzerland.
How can we accelerate the trend?
We can pay a little more money to ensure that the chickens have better living conditions. Eggs are a healthy food that, contrary to belief, do not increase the cholesterol. On the contrary, they are able to reduce the bad. So, one idea is to consume less processed foods that do not contribute anything. In this way you can invest the money you save in buying eggs that respect animal welfare. And you? Do you notice the numbers on the eggs?
