New Data from The Humane League Labs Shows Amount of U.S. Cage-Free Hens Has Doubled in Just Three Years

(New York, NY - August 12, 2019)—The Humane League Labs today released data showing that 20.3% of all commercial egg-laying hens in the United States are living in cage-free housing systems as of June 2019. The total number of hens in cage-free systems is 67 million hens, as compared to just 42.9 million reported in 2016.

The report exhibits that, with a growing number of hens living free from cages today, conditions are steadily improving for animals raised for food in the United States. However, there are still tremendous improvements to be made overall, with billions of chickens still suffering everyday on factory farms.

Following ongoing pressure campaigns by The Humane League and other animal protection organizations, about 400 U.S. businesses have agreed to transition to source only cage-free eggs—many with a deadline of 2022 or 2025. This has required the egg production industry to adapt in order to meet this new cage-free demand.

"As more and more food companies update their animal welfare policies to transition away from cages altogether, these data will help them to understand where their eggs come from and how the changes they are making improves the living conditions for real animals," said Samara Mendez, Economist at The Humane League Labs. "The information is also crucial in ensuring that we hold companies accountable for the commitments they make for animals in their supply chains."

Initial analysis shows that, at the time of publication, 20.3% of all egg-laying hens in the United States are living in cage-free housing systems, which is a notable increase of 6.9% within just three years. The report illustrates that the cage-free industry has notably sped up since 2015.

The Humane League Labs compiled data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) from August 2016 to May 2019 into an analysis-ready data set that tracks the flock size and egg production of all hens to understand the relative number living in cage-free environments. It also serves to clarify language used often by egg producers and the USDA, such as "cage-free," "egg-laying hen," and "table egg".

A video about the research can be found here.

For more information about the report and the movement to end the abuse of animals raised for food, please visit thehumaneleague.org/labs.

About The Humane League The Humane League is an international nonprofit ending the abuse of animals raised for food by influencing the policies of the world’s biggest companies, demanding legislation, and empowering others to take action and leave animals off their plates. Since its founding in 2005, The Humane League has focused on effectively ending the worst abuses in factory farming, securing strong animal welfare commitments from major foodservice providers, restaurants, food manufacturers and hospitality leaders around the world, changing the lives for billions of farm animals suffering everyday.

Correction This article was updated on January 11, 2020 to revise the number of food businesses with commitments to source cage-free eggs.

Media Contact Julia Tomkins (973)-722-4736 jtomkins@thehumaneleague.org