Dec 11
29
EU rules on battery hens come into force 1 January
The ban on “un-enriched” cages for laying hens will enter into force next Sunday, 1 January 2012.
Ireland, initially declared as non-compliant, will achieve compliance through culling of hens in 10 farms in the first week of January. The European Commission very much regrets that, despite numerous calls to action and discussions with the Member States, almost half of them do not fully comply with EU law.
This means that on January 1st, these countries will face infringement proceedings through the European Court of Justice. So-called “enriched” cages allow hens to perform natural behaviors including nesting, roosting, and scratching by giving them perches and litter. At 750 cm² per hen, they also give hens more room (although not a lot more) than non-enriched cages at 550 cm² of cage area per hen.
Fourteen Member States continue to keep 46 million hens in cages which will become illegal on 1 January. Member States have had thirteen years to implement the Directive but in spite of intensive action by the Commission and the European Parliament, many have failed to do so. From 1 January 2003 onwards such cages were not permitted to be built anymore or utilised for the first time. By January 2012 at the latest this system must be prohibited, as laid down in Directive 1999/74/EC.
