Michael Windsor
Major restaurant chains made bold promises to end cruel cages for hens. Our new report reveals which companies are delivering—and which aren't.
When Americans learned about one of the cruelest practices in factory farming—confining egg-laying hens in barren wire cages so small they can't even spread their wings—they demanded change.
The restaurant industry responded with commitments to eliminate these cages from their supply chains. Now, as 2025 deadlines arrive, our latest Eggsposé report reveals which companies kept their word to animals and consumers—and which didn’t.
The reality for hens
In battery cages, as many as ten hens spend their entire lives crammed into a space the size of a filing cabinet drawer. They’re unable to stretch their wings, stand upright, or engage in their most basic normal behaviors. This extreme confinement causes severe physical and psychological distress—and it’s completely unnecessary.
Progress worth celebrating
Thanks to your voice, more than 42% of hens in the US are no longer living in battery cages—up dramatically from just 10% in 2014. Several major chains have fully delivered on their commitments:
- McDonald’s achieved 100% cage-free eggs in the US two years ahead of schedule
- Starbucks completed its transition in the US and Canada in 2022
- Taco Bell has been 100% cage-free since 2016
- Panera fulfilled its pledge in 2022
Transparency matters
With only 50% of consumers—and just 28% of Gen Z—trusting the brands they buy from, transparency about progress toward animal welfare commitments is crucial. Yet some major chains have gone silent about their cage-free promises:
- Subway (pledged in 2015, not reporting progress towards its 2025 commitment)
- Wendy’s (refuses to commit to a cage-free policy)
- Chick-fil-A (no progress updates since 2016 pledge)
- Bojangles (no updates since 2016 commitment)
The path forward
Despite challenges like avian influenza, the cage-free transition continues gaining momentum. Eleven states—Arizona, California, Colorado, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, Utah, and Washington—have all passed laws regulating the production and/or the sale of “conventional” eggs (eggs from caged hens). The global cage-free market is projected to grow from 5.79 billion to 8.97 billion over the next decade, reflecting growing consumer demand for more ethical food choices.
Nearly 70% of Americans consider animal welfare “very” or “extremely” important in their purchasing decisions. In fact, 86% of grocery shoppers bought at least one item with a positive animal welfare claim in the past year, with 79% consciously paying extra for higher standards. The message is clear: consumers want to know that hens aren’t suffering in cages.
What you can do
Your voice created this momentum for change, and your continued advocacy matters. Visit EndCages.com to:
- Thank companies keeping their promises to hens
- Call on lagging chains to honor their commitments
- Share this report with friends who care about animals
Together, we can ensure companies follow through on their pledges to end one of the cruelest factory farming practices ever to be invented. The hens counting on these promises deserve nothing less.
