Why is Australia lagging behind on banning battery cages?
Image: Animal Liberation
Australia is lagging behind on banning battery cages, failing not only to meet public demand but international standards. Battery cages are a cruel and outdated system, a sentiment shared by the majority of Australians who recognise the unnecessary suffering they cause. Two years ago, Australian governments finally recognised the widespread public support for an end to the practice, endorsing new national standards that include a phase out of these systems nationwide. Despite this, nearly 1 in 3 egg laying hens in Australia remain confined to battery cages, with only two of out of eight states and territories enacting legal changes to implement the standards. The large proportion of hens still suffering in cages demonstrates the disconnect between public sentiment, scientific evidence and the government ministers responsible for implementing the changes.
The unnecessary suffering caused by battery cages
Currently, millions of Australian hens are restricted to a barren wire cage with less than an A4 sheet of paper space per bird to move for the duration of their lives. Hens are intelligent, social and empathetic animals. Restricting hens to battery cages, denies them the ability to express natural behaviours such as flapping their wings, perching, nesting and foraging. The extreme conditions cause hens constant mental distress and physical illnesses such as fatty liver disease, osteoporosis, and excruciating injuries like fractures.
Image: Animal Liberation
The challenge to end battery cages remains despite national commitments
In July 2023, all of Australia’s state and territory Agricultural Ministers endorsed the newly revised Australian Animal Welfare Standards and Guidelines for Poultry (the national standards), which include a phase out of battery cages with a generous end deadline of 2036. However, as we approach the 2-year mark since this commitment, only Western Australia has implemented this phase out into their state regulation (with the ACT having already phased out battery cages in 2014). So why is Australia lagging behind on ridding the country of such a cruel and unpopular system?
Despite the little action taken by state governments such as Victoria since this phase out commitment, in February of this year industry lobbyists have called on both the state and federal government to put on hold the proposed national phaseout.
Conflicts of interest and controversy delay State Ministers from implementing change
Agriculture ministers have competing responsibilities. On the one hand, they’re responsible for promoting productive and profitability livestock industries. On the other, they’re responsible for protecting and improving animal welfare. These responsibilities often come into conflict, and when they do, it’s clear where the loyalties of agriculture ministers reside.
Issues in the move away from battery cages were evident from the very beginning of the process. This began with the review of the national standards in 2015, which took an astonishing 7 years to develop and update as the egg industry continually opposed and resisted bringing Australian animal welfare standards into alignment with international standards. This process was further dragged out by controversy, as accusations and evidence of industry and government collusion in the process surfaced and scientists wrote official complaints about the distortion of their research to the chair of the review.
Despite the release and eventual endorsement of the updated national standards and phase out deadline of 2036, then Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt warned that the time frame of the implementation was to be determined by each state and territory. This leaves the power now in the hands of each state agriculture minister, who are tasked with administering a change that powerful industry lobbyists have been actively fighting for over a decade. This conflict has seen agricultural ministers (outside of Western Australia) delay implementing their own commitments, needlessly sentencing millions of additional hens to a cruel lifetime of suffering within battery cages.
How does Australia compare internationally?
Australia’s national cage phase out commitment in 2023 made it one of the last remaining OECD countries to take steps towards ending battery cage systems. The European Union, Switzerland, and Austria had already phased out battery cages before Australia even began its 7-year review into cage systems in 2015. The current phase-out deadline of 2036 means Australia is enforcing animal welfare regulations 44 years after countries first implemented bans on the cruel practice.
Globally, 2,500 companies have made the commitment to not use caged eggs, including Coles, Woolworths, Aldi, Compass Group, Mars, Nestle, McDonalds, Grill’d, Hungry Jack’s, and Zambrero. As other nations and corporations move forward, Australia is being left behind, with our far away deadline (and potential further delays) damaging our international reputation and consumers’ confidence in the industry.
The Alliance is working directly with politicians and the public to change the system
In a system dominated by vested interests, the Alliance advocates for vital animal welfare reforms that are backed by science and public support. That is why we’re urging state governments to act on their battery cage phase out commitments, as every delay means more hens suffer needlessly.
Together with our Alliance members, we have been engaging directly with political parties and government officials in states and territories across the country.
To help others speak up, we’ve also created a political engagement toolkit to support individuals in engaging effectively with their local politicians.
Our core goal is to transform the current broken animal welfare system, in which agriculture ministers and departments have control of our nation’s animal welfare standards, to one that prioritises science, community expectations, and the interests of animals.
How the Fair Go for Animals reforms can fix the broken system
The Fair Go for Animals campaign proposes six crucial reforms that work together to build a fairer and more independent system. Creating dedicated Ministers for Animal Welfare and establishing a National Animal Welfare Commission to oversee the development of national animal welfare standards will significantly reduce the conflicts of interest in the current system and give animal welfare greater weight in the decision-making process.
To further guide standards development processes, legislative decision-making principles, which recognise and prioritise the sentience of animals, should be adopted to promote further consistency and accountability.
These reforms will ensure that animal welfare is central to decision-making, and contemporary science and community expectations play a greater role in informing outcomes. For layer hens, this provides an opportunity for their welfare to be prioritised over industry profits, paving a way to end cruel practices like battery cages in a reasonable time frame.
What can you do?
With your support, we can create a future where animal welfare laws are a true reflection of our society's compassion and respect for all animals. Now more than ever it is crucial we unite to create a stronger voice at a pivotal time in our country’s future. You can help by:
Endorsing the Fair Go for Animals campaign: By adding your name, your name to the form below.
Contacting your state Agriculture Minister and local member of parliament: Use our Influence Change Toolkit to guide you in having effective engagement with your state representatives and let them know that you want to see a legislative end to battery cages in your state.
