Breaking Down Ahold Delhaize’s Excuses for Delaying Its Cage-Free Egg Transition

The company cites customer demand, affordability, and supply chain issues as reasons for not meeting its commitment. But a closer analysis reveals how Ahold Delhaize is using these excuses to justify its broken promises to its customers.

Customers do care about animal welfare

Whether it’s measured through customer surveys or voter support for states with cage-free initiatives, it’s clear that customers do care about animal welfare, and have a growing preference for humane and sustainable food options. Here’s what isn’t so clear: Ahold Delhaize’s egg labeling. Consumers tend to find egg carton labeling confusing, and are easily misled about which products are actually higher-welfare.

Ahold Delhaize’s latest egg guide even leaves off “conventional” eggs (i.e., eggs from caged hens) as an option, implying that consumers are only being offered higher-welfare products.

If Ahold Delhaize cared about what its customers wanted, it would prioritize transparency and clarity in its cage-free marketing.

Cage-free eggs can be affordable

While affordability is a valid concern, retailers price cage-free eggs to rake in profits, instead of making real progress on their cage-free transitions. Caged eggs are used as a “loss leader” for retailers—a product that is usually priced low to lure customers in, and ultimately keep them from shopping at competing stores. Meanwhile, cage-free eggs tend to be sold at an unnecessary markup as a supposed luxury good, creating an even greater gap in egg pricing.

Ahold Delhaize promised to go cage-free by 2025, but if it were serious about honoring that promise, it would lower the price of cage-free eggs—instead of marking them up, or marketing them as a specialty option. Additionally, the company could reduce the cost of its private label cage-free options to be on par with its caged eggs to help mitigate costs for budget-conscious consumers, and show that it is actually dedicated to offering a low-cost, higher welfare egg.

Supply chain challenges can be overcome

The company indicates that supply issues are a barrier to transitioning to cage-free eggs. However, industry-wide increases in demand for cage-free products have been well-documented and anticipated for over ten years. Producers continually insist that there are enough cage-free eggs to meet demand, and any temporary shortages resulting from bird flu are quickly remedied. Many companies have successfully navigated supply chain challenges by fostering direct relationships with suppliers, investing in infrastructure, and supporting the growth of cage-free egg production. National retailers operating in cage-free states have switched their stores to be 100% compliant without resulting in major egg shortages.

Brands of Ahold Delhaize gave themselves nine years to pursue similar proactive strategies, but instead of doing so, Ahold broke its commitments. And though an Ahold Delhaize press release stated that the company made a cage-free egg commitment in 2019, it neglected to mention that cage-free commitments for its brands Ahold USA and Delhaize America were made three years earlier. The brands merged in July 2016 to become Ahold Delhaize, but before the merger, they published cage-free policies: In February 2016, Ahold USA promised its private label brands would be 100% cage-free by 2022, and a month later, Delhaize America promised it would be 100% cage-free by 2025. Further delaying the shift to cage-free eggs undermines Ahold Delhaize's credibility as a retail leader, and its trustworthiness to customers.

While Ahold Delhaize highlights genuine concerns surrounding its transition to cage-free eggs, these issues are not insurmountable. Real leadership requires taking decisive steps to fulfill promises made to consumers. The company must prioritize keeping its promises to meet consumer demand, and stop selling caged eggs.

To learn more, visit AholdDelhaizeCruelty.com.