Progress for hens: a change that will affect millions

Earlier this year, the Open Wing Alliance, a global coalition of animal protection organizations established by The Humane League, kicked off a campaign demanding Best Western and Hilton to eradicate cages from their supply chains worldwide.

This ask was especially important given the size and influence of these hotel chains. Best Western is one of the biggest hotel chains in the world, with 4,500 hotels across more than 100 countries worldwide.

As well as two large scale kick off protests with activists from over 40 organizations, animal welfare supporters across the globe took action by signing petitions, emailing and commenting on social media to put pressure on these hotel giants to improve conditions for chickens.

Within 24 hours of launching the campaign, Hilton committed to an ironclad policy. This was a monumental victory and means that, by 2025, Hilton will be sourcing 100% of its eggs from cage-free sources.

Despite this commitment from Hilton, Best Western still refused to back down.

But we did not give up.

With the support of activists across the world we were able to persuade Best Western to commit to change. And, after six weeks of campaigning and discussions with Best Western's executive team, the chain released a comprehensive cage-free policy—Best Western's first ever animal welfare commitment. This is a strong move for any company, but especially one that has never made a commitment like this before.

Chickens used to produce eggs often have short lives filled with suffering and pain. While barren battery cages are banned in the EU, they are still used around the world.

These cages force chickens to spend their whole lives in spaces smaller than an A4 sheet of paper.

We want an end to cages.

And with both Hilton and Best Western committing to these policies, we are one step closer.

This victory will impact the lives of millions of hens, and is a reminder of what we can achieve when we collaborate towards a common goal.