Canadians encouraged to think outside the cage

The Richmond City Council in Canada has asked city staff to consider a policy banning cage eggs from all city facilities.

Bruce Passmore of the Vancouver Humane Society asked for the ban, in the hope other municipalities across Canada will follow.

"Richmond would become the first city in Canada to go cage-free," he said.

He said the society approached the Richmond City Council because Richmond is one of the biggest consumers of eggs in the lower mainland.

Ninety-eight per cent of the eggs consumed by the Canadian public come from hens kept in battery cages, Passmore said, but that most Canadians are unaware of this.

Passmore said he believes Canadians would not buy cage eggs if they were aware of industry practices. "They just don't know what they're buying," he said.

Councillors Evelina Halsey-Brandt and Harold Steves - both of whom have farming backgrounds - liked the idea.

"I would like to see a policy of cage-free hens," Halsey-Brandt said.

Steves moved a motion to have staff consider Passmore's proposal. The motion carried, with Mayor Malcolm Brodie opposed.

"I'm not persuaded there is an issue in Richmond," he said.

At this stage, it is unclear whether chicken farms in the area use battery cages, or even whether eggs from caged hens are anywhere to be found in city facilities.

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Editor WorldPoultry