House Proposal Would Establish Standard for Housing, Treatment of Egg-Laying Hens

Four members of the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced bipartisan
legislation (H.R. 3798) that would provide “a uniform national standard
for the housing and treatment of egg-laying hens.” According to the bill’s lead
author, Representative Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.), the Egg Products Inspection
Act Amendments of 2012 would also bring sustainability to the egg industry
by avoiding a “problematic patchwork of state laws.”

Noting that the proposed measure formalizes a 2011 agreement between the
United Egg Producers and The Humane Society of the United States, Schrader
said the proposal would require egg producers to nearly double the housing
space allotted to egg-laying hens and make other “significant animal welfare
improvements” within a 15- to 18-year phase-in period. More specifically, the
legislation advocates (i) replacing conventional cages with “enriched colony
housing systems” that feature perches, nesting boxes and scratching areas;
(ii) labeling on egg cartons that discloses the method used to produce the
eggs, such as “eggs from caged hens” or “eggs from hens in enriched cages”;
(iii) limiting ammonia levels in henhouses; and (iv) prohibiting the sale and
transport of eggs and egg products that do not meet these requirements. See
Press Release of Representative Kurt Schrader, January 23, 2012.