Toward A World Without Cages: 2023 OWA Year in Review

This year, the Open Wing Alliance (OWA)—a historic coalition that has grown to 100 member organizations fighting for hens across 72 different countries—continued to disrupt the entire global egg industry. By pressuring the world’s most powerful corporations to phase out cruel cages, the OWA ensured that millions of hens will finally be able to spread their wings. As we gear up for another year of groundbreaking progress, we’re looking back on some of the OWA’s greatest accomplishments for chickens across every region of the globe.

Progress for millions of hens

In 2023, the Open Wing Alliance successfully pressured 138 total companies to do better for hens—resulting in significant improvements in the lives of millions of animals. These commitments represented incredible progress across each region of the world:

• Africa: 2 companies
• Asia: 10 companies
• Europe: 59 companies
• Latin America: 45 companies
• North America: 8 companies
• Oceania: 4 companies
• Global: 11 companies

Thanks to advocates like you, who took thousands of digital actions, showed up for protests, and demanded better for animals, OWA was able to win campaigns against some of the world’s most powerful companies.

In January, advocates launched (and won!) a campaign against Viking Cruise Lines, culminating in a public commitment from the company to source 100% cage-free eggs by 2025. In February, the OWA demanded accountability from manufacturing companies that weren’t reporting progress on their global cage-free commitments—resulting in PepsiCo, Kellogg’s, and Cerealto Siro all reporting their progress toward ending cages.

In May, the OWA launched a flagship campaign against Jollibee, a global fast food chain responsible for keeping millions of hens trapped in cages. Despite radio silence from the company, OWA groups and advocates tirelessly bombarded Jollibee with digital actions and protests for three weeks—resulting in a commitment to transition to 100% cage-free eggs in the US by 2025 and globally by 2035!

Toward the end of the year, OWA set its sights on Caffè Nero, Inspire Brands, Focus Brands, and Au Bon Pain. Caffè Nero quickly began reporting progress on its website. Through the end of the year and into 2024, supporters have continued to bombard the other brands with digital actions. The year may have come to an end, but when it comes to the dedication of advocates around the globe, there’s no end in sight.

Changing the world for chickens

Across countries and continents, members of the Open Wing Alliance are united in pursuit of a beautiful mission—ending the abuse of animals. From Africa to Asia to the United States, from Europe to Latin America, organizations worked to improve the lives of chickens at regional and local levels. In some cases, member groups began cage-free work in their countries for the first time in history.

Here are just a few of the inspiring ways OWA member groups changed the world for chickens in 2023.

Africa

It was a landmark year for the cage-free movement in Africa. The Open Wing Alliance launched the first-ever OWA Africa Ranking Report, a comprehensive investigation into which Africa-based companies are following through on their cage-free promises—and which are falling behind. Holding companies accountable in this way will be essential in ensuring that their cage-free commitments result in real, tangible change for animals.

In Ghana, OWA member organization Animal Welfare League established their National Cage-Free Farmers’ Network and Directory—which has already united 93 farmers from three regions in committing over 350,000 hens to cage-free housing. In South Africa, Animal Law Reform South Africa (ALRSA) released a pioneering report detailing environmental and welfare concerns about egg production in the country, which resulted in prominent media coverage about the plight of hens. And in Kenya, OWA organizations Utunzi Animal Welfare Organization and Africa Network for Animal Welfare met with the Kenyan government to discuss amending the country’s animal welfare and protection bill—culminating in an agreement on the need for an animal welfare strategy in Kenya, as well as planned annual meetings.

Europe

In Europe, it was a year of firsts for egg-laying hens and chickens raised for food. OWA member groups secured 25 cage-free commitments in Europe last year, as well as 28 European Chicken Commitments (ECC)—a standard focused on improving the lives of “broiler” chickens. Broiler chickens, or chickens raised for food, are bred to grow so quickly that their bodies can’t keep up—causing significant welfare issues throughout their lives. Chickens also face a harrowing slaughter, with many documented instances of animals being boiled alive.

Advocates in Europe pressured numerous companies to commit to the ECC, including Burger King France, which committed to the ECC after one year of campaigning from OWA group L214. Advocates secured the first-ever ECC commitments from Finnish and Slovakian companies, and thanks to the work of Anima International, the government of Denmark agreed to phase out meat from fast-growing chickens from all state purchases. And Animal Welfare Observatory and Albert Schweitzer Foundation are leading a hard-hitting campaign against Lidl, pressuring them to commit to the ECC.

As for egg-laying hens in Europe, Global Action in the Interest of Animals (GAIA) secured the ban of new cages in Flanders, Belgium starting this month—and banned existing cages starting January 2036. This means cages will be banned everywhere in the country.

Latin America

Since September of 2022, OWA groups in Latin America have secured a whopping 54 cage-free commitments in the region. In Brazil, Forum Animal successfully pressured three universities to improve their animal welfare practices. In Ecuador, Terranimal created and distributed a Guide for Animal Welfare in Laying Hens and Egg Production for free-range systems to universities, farms, and both public and private entities. In Peru, Asociación para el Rescate y Bienestar de los Animales (ARBA) pushed an entire district to eliminate cages—implementing a cage-free policy in farms, restaurants, hotels, and other businesses.

The "Vegetarianos Hoy" campaign successfully pressured the largest egg producers in Mexico and Chile to adopt in-ovo sexing technology when it’s available—which will spare over 624,000 male chicks from being “culled” by egg producers each year. The campaign has also proposed a bill in Colombia to improve the wellbeing of laying hens, broiler chickens, and mother pigs—introducing labels to inform consumers whether products come from cages or cage-free systems.

Asia–Pacific

Driven by member groups in the region, as well as rising concerns for animal welfare and food safety, Asia is seeing a widespread shift to cage-free egg production. 2023 saw a remarkable 162.5% increase in companies reporting their progress toward ending cages, with the number of companies reporting increasing from 8 to 21 this year.

In Indonesia, the central government is currently developing an animal welfare standard and certification system, prioritizing cage-free systems as a superior welfare standard. The development of a government cage-free certification is also underway in the Philippines, which will enforce existing cage-free standards and make them obligatory for farms seeking cage-free certification.

In Taiwan, major companies such as the Grand Hyatt Taipei, Taiwan's largest hotel, and 7-Eleven, the country's biggest convenience store chain, have begun their transition to cage-free egg sourcing. The “Let Hens Be Free” campaign to phase out battery cages also gained significant momentum in the country, including receiving attention from the president. Local companies in Thailand and Indonesia have also made positive commitments toward cage-free production. And AEON, one of Japan's largest retail chains, committed to source cage-free eggs across all its locations.

2023 by the numbers

• OWA organizations secured over 16,000 media mentions
• OWA organizations completed over 3,400 public actions
• OWA organizations gave over 230 talks at events
• OWA organizations have mobilized over 144,000 online activists—2.6 million email subscribers, 6.8 million Facebook followers, 600,000 Twitter/X followers, 2.1 million Instagram followers, 100,000 LinkedIn followers, and 400,000 TikTok followers
• Collectively, OWA organizations have over 1,900 total staff members and 12,000 volunteers

How you can help

Our work to end the abuse of chickens wouldn’t be possible without the compassion and hard work of thousands of activists around the world. But you don’t have to be a seasoned activist to change the world for chickens. We all have the power to demand corporate giants eliminate the use of cruel battery cages. Signing a petition could make a world of difference for hens suffering through life on factory farms—and help bring us closer to a world where no animal endures abuse.