By RICK A. RICHARDS
Indiana Correspondent

ATLANTA, Ga. — For years, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and the United Egg Producers (UEP) have been at odds. The two have repeatedly sued each other over allegations of mistreatment of chickens.
But on Friday, the two sides ended their adversarial relationship with an announcement that they will work together to enact new federal legislation for all 280 million hens in U.S. egg production. Mitchell Head, a spokesman for the UEP, said serious negotiations began two months ago.

Egg production in the United States is a $6.52 billion business. The top five egg-producing states are Iowa (52.53 million), Ohio (28.05 million), Pennsylvania (23.87 million), Indiana (22.89 million) and California (19.51 million). Those five represent 50 percent of the nation’s egg production. “Both sides were spending a lot of time and money suing each other and fighting each other in the state legislatures,” said Head.

HSUS, through a series of undercover operations in recent years, presented what it said was evidence of inhumane conditions for laying hens. The organization charged that hens were not being provided enough room and that conditions were responsible for the unnecessary deaths of chickens.
The UEP denied the claims; that’s where things stood until last Thursday’s announcement.

The standards advocated by UEP and HSUS, if enacted, would be the first federal law addressing the treatment of animals on farms. The proposed legislation would require conventional cages (currently used by more than 90 percent of the egg industry) to be replaced with new, enriched housing systems that provide each hen nearly double the amount of space they’re currently allotted.

Such legislation also would require all egg-laying hens be provided, through the new enriched housing system, with an environment that will allow them to express natural behaviors – such as perches, nesting boxes and scratching areas. It would mandate labeling on all egg cartons nationwide to inform consumers of the method used to produce the eggs, such as “eggs from caged hens,” “eggs from hens in enriched cages,” “eggs from cage-free hens” and “eggs from free-range hens.”

It would also prohibit feed- or water-withholding molting to extend the laying cycle, a practice already prohibited by the UEP Certified program adhered to by a majority of egg farmers; require standards approved by the American Veterinary Medical Assoc. for euthanasia for egg-laying hens; prohibit excessive ammonia levels in henhouses; and prohibit the sale of eggs and egg products nationwide that don’t meet these requirements.

“We were looking for one national standard,” said Head, adding a single standard will make it easier for producers to sell their eggs.

If passed by Congress, the federal law would supersede existing state laws on laying hens in Arizona, California, Michigan and Ohio; the agreement put pending legislation on hold in Washington and Oregon. Head explained that if states began passing their own rules, there could conceivably be a patchwork of regulations that would make it difficult, if not impossible, for producers in one state to sell their eggs in another.

According to a statement from HSUS, 92 percent of egg-laying hens in the U.S. are confined to barren battery cages so small they can’t spread their wings. Most of those hens have 67 square inches of space.

“In recent years, HSUS has campaigned against these extreme confinement systems because they so severely compromise the welfare of hens,” read the HSUS statement.

“We’ve pushed for new state laws to give the birds more space and helped food retailers start using cage-free hens. Along the way, we’ve typically sparred with the United Egg Producers, the trade association for the nation’s large egg producers.”

If the proposed legislation passes, the new regulations would be phased in over the next 15-18 years. New regulations would require that hens be provided a minimum of 124-144 square inches of space, along with a nesting area, perch and scratching area. Head said the phase-in allows farmers to replace their old cages when they reach the end of their useful lives, with new ones. Even so, Head said the investment will cost egg producers more than $4 billion.

“America’s egg producers have continually worked to improve animal welfare, and we strongly believe our commitment to a national standard for hen welfare is in the best interest of our animals, customers and consumers,” said Bob Krouse, chair of UEP and operator of Midwest Poultry Services in Mentone, Ind.
“We are committed to working together for the good of the hens in our care, and believe a national standard is far superior than a patchwork of state laws and regulations that would be cumbersome for our customers and confusing to consumers.”

“Passing this bill would be an historic improvement for hundreds of millions of animals per year,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of HSUS. “It is always our greatest hope to find common ground and to forge solutions, even with traditional adversaries. We are excited about a new and better pathway forward, and hope the Congress seizes the opportunity to embrace this sort of collaboration and mutual understanding.

“We extend our thanks to the producers within the industry for agreeing to make the needed investments to upgrade their housing and to improve animal welfare in a meaningful way.”