U.S. District Judge Charles Kocoras in Chicago ruled on Tuesday that reasonable consumers would not agree with the plaintiff Adam Sorkin that “farm fresh” necessarily meant hens “living on farms, with open green space, grass, hay and straw.”

Sorkin said he paid a premium price for “farm fresh” eggs under the Roundy’s label at Mariano’s Fresh Market stores—Kroger owns both brands—in the Chicago area, and would have paid less or not bought them had he known their origins.

But in dismissing the proposed class action, Kocoras distinguished “farm fresh” from descriptors such as “cage-free,” “free-range” and “pasture-raised” that actually describe the living conditions of hens.

“The court agrees with Kroger that no reasonable consumer would plausibly spin free-roaming hens on a grassy, open field from the term ‘farm fresh,'” Kocoras wrote.

“‘Farm Fresh Eggs’ means precisely what it says: the eggs are fresh from a farm,” he added. “It is about origin and timing, nothing more.”

Lawyers for Sorkin did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. Kroger and its lawyers did not immediately respond to similar requests.

Sorkin sued last October, eight months after the nonprofit advocacy group Data for Progress released a report, “Cracking Down on Kroger,” calling for increased transparency about where Kroger’s eggs come from.

The report included a survey of 646 Kroger customers, where 41 per cent said they thought “farm fresh” meant cage-free, 14 per cent said it meant cages were used, and 45 per cent didn’t know.

The case is Sorkin v Kroger Co, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, No. 23-14916.

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In a survey of more than 1,000 Canadians, 72 per cent of respondents said Canada’s code of practice should ban caged confinement of laying hens.

The survey, released this summer, comes from Bryant Research, a U.K. firm that “uses social science research to help accelerate the protein transition from conventional meat to alternative proteins,” its website says.

The firm spoke with consumers representing regions across Canada, 97 per cent of whom said they ate eggs. After showing them photos and descriptions of various laying hen housing systems, it asked if they found them acceptable.

Eighty per cent said conventional cages were unacceptable, and 75 per cent said enriched or colony cages were unacceptable.

VIDEO: Grand opening for Manitoba Egg Farmers’ centre

“Given the widespread support for ending cage confinement, many Canadians may be shocked to learn that most major grocery stores still source the majority of their eggs from cage systems,” said animal advocacy group Mercy for Animals in a news release regarding the poll.

“Deadlines for many companies to meet public promises to be 100 per cent cage-free are only two years away,” the group added.

Many large Canadian retailers and restaurant chains have pledged to switch to cage-free eggs. In 2015, McDonalds Canada announced it would phase out eggs from caged birds by 2025. In 2016, several major grocers such as Loblaw, Sobeys and Walmart Canada promised to do the same.

However, some of those companies — while not walking back their commitment — have acknowledged it won’t be possible as soon as promised.

“We’ve learned that the supply chain needs more time to adapt and change,” Sobeys said in its 2022 animal welfare statement.

In its 2022 environmental social governance report, Loblaw said it had made progress toward the goal.

“However, in 2021 it became evident that our farmer partners would not be able to meet the 2025 timeline,” it said. “[We] reaffirmed our commitment to the National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) and their efforts to generate consensus around egg systems moving forward.”

The most current guidelines from the council, which develops codes of practices for farm animal care, require conventional battery cages to be phased out by 2036 in favour of enriched or colony housing — larger cages with amenities like perches and nesting boxes.

Industry data shows the percentage of laying hens housed in conventional cages has been in steady decline, falling to 51 per cent in 2022 from 82 per cent in 2016. In 2022, nearly 32 per cent of hens lived in enriched colony housing.

In that time frame, demand for cage-free eggs has grown, but not to anywhere near the majority.

By 2022 the number of hens in uncaged housing like free range, free run or organic systems rose to about 17 per cent from 10 per cent in 2016.

In Manitoba, about 15 per cent of egg quota was devoted to cage-free housing systems in 2022. This was enough to cover demand for free-run, free-range and organic eggs in the province, a spokesperson for Manitoba Egg Farmers told the Co-operator.

“As the market demand for cage-free eggs increases, farmers will ensure there is enough eggs from cage-free housing systems to supply the market,” the spokesperson added.

However, Bryant’s research indicates many Canadians don’t know how their eggs are produced.

When asked “what percentage of egg-laying hens do you think are still housed in cages in Canada,” 43 said they thought half to three-quarters were housed in cages, and 33 per cent said one quarter to half of hens were housed in cages. Thirteen per cent thought zero to one quarter lived in cages.

When shown pictures of conventional cages, nearly 70 per cent of respondents said conditions were worse than expected.

Of those surveyed, 83 per cent said they were more likely to buy cage-free eggs after seeing the images in the survey. Only 63 per cent said they’d be willing to buy cage-free eggs if they cost more, while 25 per cent were unsure and 11 per cent said they would not.

California’s Proposition 12, recently upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, banned caged housing for laying hens as of 2022. It also banned the sale in California of eggs from hens housed in ways that do not comply with the state’s rules.

In June 2021, the European Commission said it would propose legislation in 2023 to phase out “caged farming” for most animals, Reuters reported. Battery cages are already outlawed, but as of 2019, about half of laying hens were kept in larger, “furnished” cages, Reuters added.

Animal welfare group representatives would have preferred the NFACC do the same, said Kathy Duncan, director of national programs at Humane Canada. Humane Canada representatives often take part in NFACC revisions.

However, enriched housing is an improvement over conventional housing, said Duncan. Typically, conversations around code revisions require compromises — for example, what the industry thinks it can manage in the required timeframe.

“We thought that [enriched housing] should be framed as a transitional form of housing on the way to cage-free rather than a stopping place,” Duncan added.

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Nestle Canada, whose products using eggs include some of its Lean Cuisine meals and Real Dairy desserts, said Wednesday it was “dedicated to working with Canadian farmers to make this transition.” The Canadian business buys about 500,000 eggs per year.

The company said its move in Canada is part of its “global commitment on farm animal welfare,” working in concert with World Animal Protection, a global animal welfare organization, and inspection firm SGS to “assess its suppliers against these commitments.”

The company’s animal welfare commitment plan, launched in 2012, is meant to cut out “specific farming practices” from the company’s supply chain, such as veal crates, tail docking for cattle and pigs and gestation crates for pigs.

Josey Kitson, executive director for World Animal Protection Canada, said in Nestle’s release that the company’s latest pledge “will have a huge positive impact on the lives of hundreds of thousands of hens.”

Cage systems for laying hens have previously been credited with helping to reduce disease outbreaks by separating the birds from their litter, improving air quality in barns and hindering behaviours such as feather pecking and cannibalism.

Animal welfare advocates contend that battery cage systems prevent birds’ normal nesting, foraging and dust-bathing behaviour and exercise.

Several jurisdictions have legislated phase-outs for battery cages. Manitoba Egg Farmers in 2013 announced a ban on new conventional cage systems beyond 2014. In February this year, Egg Farmers of Canada announced its members would move entirely to “enriched” housing, free-run, aviary or free-range housing by 2036.

“Unlike conventional barns, cage-free systems allow hens to move around freely, perch and lay their eggs in a nest box,” Kitson said in Nestle’s release. “We applaud Nestle Canada’s commitment to hens today and their ongoing efforts to give other farm animals better lives as well.”

Krista Hiddema, Canadian vice-president for another animal welfare group, Mercy For Animals, said Saturday the company’s new policy “will significantly improve the welfare of millions of egg-laying hens here in Canada.”

Mercy For Animals also said Nestle’s move was “the result of productive discussions” with its own representatives.

Noting many other food companies and restaurant chains have already made similar commitments, Hiddema also urged the National Farm Animal Care Council, the Canadian body drafting codes of practice for farmed animal care, to make sure the upcoming final version of its Code of Practice for layers calls for “only cage-free housing.”

About 90 per cent of egg production in Canada is now in conventional housing, EFC said previously, while about 10 per cent is in enriched housing, free-run, aviary or free-range formats.

EFC said its plan calls for a shift to about a 50-50 mix in eight years, moving to about 85 per cent alternative over conventional in 15 years.

Nestle, whose Canadian operations include over 20 plants, distribution and sales sites, said Wednesday it’s also developing “pilot projects” with its suppliers and with World Animal Protection to “establish a roadmap for sourcing cage-free eggs in Europe and the rest of the world.” — AGCanada.com Network

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The biggest food retailer in the U.S. said Tuesday it would mandate its egg suppliers to be certified and compliant with United Egg Producers’ animal husbandry guidelines or an equivalent standard.

The decision comes at a time when the food industry is under pressure from groups including the Humane Society of the United States, Mercy for Animals and World Animal Protection, which have successfully lobbied many companies to adopt animal welfare practices.

The company said its nine-year transition period will be based on “available supply, affordability and customer demand.”

Wal-Mart also reiterated it will “continue to collaborate with suppliers, government agencies, academics, NGOs, animal health companies and veterinary experts to assess and improve how food sold to its U.S. customers is grown and raised.”

— Reporting for Reuters by Ramkumar Iyer in Bangalore. Includes files from AGCanada.com Network staff.

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The grocer members of the Retail Council of Canada (RCC), which include Loblaw, Sobeys/Safeway, Metro and Wal-Mart Canada, said Friday they are “voluntarily committing to the objective of purchasing cage-free eggs by the end of 2025.”

However, David Wilkes, senior vice-president for government relations and the grocery division at RCC, said in a release that the grocers’ commitment is “made recognizing the restrictions created by Canada’s supply management system.”

The cage-free timeline, he said, thus “will have to be managed in the context of availability of supply within the domestic market.”

The RCC also noted the National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) expects to release a new Canadian code of practice for layer hens later this year.

When released, NFACC’s layer hen code is expected to guide Canada’s egg sector on various aspects of farm management and welfare practices, by way of “recommendations and requirements for housing, care, transportation, processing and other animal husbandry practices,” the RCC said.

The RCC, Wilkes said, “remains firmly committed to the NFACC process and will work with other participants to not only advance our voluntary commitment to move to cage-free environments by the end of 2025, but also by ensuring suppliers adhere to the code’s recommendations.”

Egg Farmers of Canada (EFC) last month announced a transition plan to move all Canadian layer hens away from conventional battery cage-style housing into “enriched housing, free-run, aviary or free-range” by 2036 — “assuming the current market conditions prevail.”

Without mentioning the RCC announcement, the national egg producer group said in a statement Friday it “look(s) forward to working with retailers to ensure high-quality Canadian eggs remain on grocery shelves everywhere, and we will continue to work with our supply chain to do so and to align our approaches as much as possible.”

EFC on Friday also noted its members have long supported and taken part in the NFACC process and brought last month’s industry plan forward for the NFACC review of the egg industry code or practice.

“We believe a code that takes into account what the egg industry analyzed, developed and proposed to be realistic will be stronger, and a tremendous framework on which to make many other enhancements to our industry for years to come,” EFC said.

EFC also said it’s committed to research on hen housing systems as well as consumer preferences, and to make sure decisions on industry practices are “evidence-based.”

Doing so, the egg producer group said, “ensures choice and price stability to shoppers while protecting the entire supply chain from shortages or the production of eggs for which there are no market.”

EFC also reiterated Friday that the various layer hen housing systems in use today “all have trade-offs across a host of sustainability factors including animal health and well-being, environment, food safety, worker health and safety and food affordability.”

Various non-government animal welfare groups on Friday hailed the RCC’s move, noting RCC grocer members account for 90 per cent of grocery store sales in Canada.

World Animal Protection Canada executive director Josey Kitson said in a separate release that the council’s decision “will have a transformative effect on the way that laying hens are housed in Canada.”

Nathan Runkle, president of the Canadian arm of Mercy for Animals, in another release, called RCC’s pledge “a watershed moment for farmed animals and caring consumers in Canada” and said it marks a “tipping point” for the egg sector.

“Any food company that has not yet adopted a cage-free egg policy is simply out of step with consumer expectations and business trends.”

Major quick-service restaurant chains operating in Canada have made announcements similar to the RCC’s in recent months, varying in the level of housing they expect for layer hens.

A+W said earlier this month it plans to get all its eggs from open-barn suppliers within two years. The owner of Tim Hortons and Burger King said last month it would take the chains’ North American egg supplies cage-free by 2025, and McDonald’s last fall pledged to shift to free-run eggs in the same time period. –– AGCanada.com Network

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The Vancouver-based income fund said Wednesday that despite having “no open-barn housing options available” today that meet its antibiotic-free requirement, it plans to meet its new goal “within two years.”

“We are investing in innovation to accelerate the pace of change because right now there are no viable cage-free egg options that meet our supply standards regarding the use of antibiotics,” A+W Food Services president Susan Senecal said in a release.

Cage-free housing “is only being done by a relatively small number of producers in the industry, who cannot fulfill the volume, needs and specifications of A+W,” John Church, an associate professor at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, said in the company’s release.

A&W’s egg-based menu items include various breakfast sandwiches and English muffins, omelettes, a breakfast wrap and a breakfast platter.

“We need to improve the standards for laying hens overall, particularly when it comes to the health and welfare of the flock, and Canada has an opportunity to be a world leader in this area,” said Church, the B.C. regional innovation chair in cattle industry sustainability.

A+W said its pledged investment includes a $100,000 grant to not-for-profit group Farm and Food Care Canada.

A+W said the money will go to “fund a leadership discussion, potential research and related work with animal welfare scientists, veterinarians, university researchers, non-government organizations, farmers, egg suppliers and food service/restaurant and retail companies.”

But Farm and Food Care Canada, in a separate statement Thursday, emphasized it will not be funding research into finding cage-free housing alternatives for hens, and “does not advocate for positions on issues or for specific companies.”

The organization said it “was approached for this work earlier this week as a third-party co-ordinator to host a session to bring egg industry partners, retail and food service from across Canada, together with the U.S. Center for Food Integrity’s Coalition for a Sustainable Egg Supply.”

The “principle” of that discussion, the organization said, would be “to broaden it beyond hen welfare to include all issues impacting sustainable eggs including food safety, environment, hen health, worker health and safety and food affordability, and determine areas that the Canadian egg sector felt this funding would be best spent.”

No agreements will be signed for the funding or its terms, the group said, “until after the Farm and Food Care Canada board of directors and egg industry partners have discussed best options.”

“Trade-offs”

Egg Farmers of Canada, meanwhile, said Friday it wouldn’t discuss A+W’s announcement specifically, but issued a statement that Canada’s eggs “are produced in a range of ways, including conventional and enriched housing, aviary, free-run and free-range systems.”

All egg production systems, the egg producer group said, “have trade-offs across a host of sustainability factors including animal health and well-being, environment, food safety, worker health and safety and food affordability.”

EFC noted it announced a “systematic, market-oriented transition” last month, to take place over the next 20 years, away from conventional egg production toward “other methods of production for supplying eggs.”

The egg industry “hopes to discuss with stakeholders and consumers the benefits of enriched housing, which allows hens to exhibit specific behaviours which may include perching, scratching, foraging, dust bathing and nesting,” EFC said.

“The industry looks forward to discussing these important aspects, and the broader transition plan, with any and all stakeholders as this process unfolds.”

Animal welfare groups on Friday hailed A+W’s announcement. Humane Society International/Canada campaign manager Sayara Thurston said the move “sends a clear message to the egg industry that confining chickens in cages simply has no place in our nation’s agricultural future.”

World Animal Protection Canada’s executive director Josey Kitson said A+W’s move marks “the most ambitious timeline we have seen in Canada” for cage-free sourcing.

The pledge, “along with previous announcements from McDonalds and Tim Hortons, provides clear direction to producers that enriched cages are a bad investment,” she said.

WAPC noted EFC’s pledge to phase out battery cages in Canada by 2036, but added EFC’s move would allow producers to choose between enriched cages and cage-free housing systems, and “it is clear that the future of egg production in Canada is cage-free.” — AGCanada.com Network

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The plan — announced Friday by Egg Farmers of Canada, an industry group that manages nearly all of the country’s egg supply — comes as various fast-food and quick-service restaurant chains set targets for only buying eggs that come from cage-free hens.

“This isn’t something we’ve done because of companies making announcements,” said Roger Pelissero, a farmer at West Lincoln, Ont., southeast of Hamilton, and first vice-chair for the national group. “We always have in our mind what is best for our hens.”

The organization, which represents over 1,000 egg farms across the country, mapped out a plan that immediately commits egg farmers not to install any new conventional cage housing.

About 90 per cent of egg production in Canada is now in conventional housing, commonly known as battery cages, which are slightly larger than filing cabinet drawers and hold several birds each. About 10 per cent is in enriched housing, free-run, aviary or free-range formats.

The plan, to be overseen by a national working group in collaboration with the entire egg supply chain, calls for a shift to about a 50-50 mix in eight years, moving to about 85 per cent alternative over conventional in 15 years.

“All production would be in enriched housing, free-run, aviary or free-range by 2036, assuming the current market conditions prevail,” the organization said in a release, adding those projections “represent a realistic forecast of what is achievable.”

Manitoba Egg Farmers, for one, already announced in late 2013 it would ban the installation of new conventional cages beyond 2014.

Egg Farmers of Canada said it also hopes to discuss, with stakeholders and consumers, the benefits of the enriched-housing model, “which do not seem to be well or widely understood outside of the industry.”

Enriched housing provides birds with more space per bird than conventional battery cages, along with perches, scratching surfaces and private nesting boxes.

While not free-run or free-range, the enriched model is meant to maintain food safety, reduce mortalities, limit cannibalism and other aggressive behaviours and ensure adequate feed and water for all birds.

“This announcement is a huge shift and we’re confident the market will make it happen before 2036,” said Sayara Thurston, a campaigner with Humane Society International, adding that U.S. farmers have not made a similar pledge.

Egg Farmers of Canada’s announcement follows a pledge Monday from Restaurant Brands International (RBI), operator of the Tim Hortons and Burger King chains, that it would move to 100 per cent cage-free eggs for its Canadian, U.S. and Mexican stores by 2025.

Ontario-based Cara Operations, whose chains in Canada include Swiss Chalet, Harvey’s, Milestones, Montana’s, Kelsey’s, East Side Mario’s, New York Fries and others, announced Thursday some of its brands will shift toward cage-free egg supplies starting this year, with all brands transitioning by 2020.

Mercy for Animals, an animal welfare group known for its releases of undercover video from meat packing plants and barns, had specifically called out Swiss Chalet and Harvey’s in its announcement Monday hailing RBI’s move.

Chains such as Subway, McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Starbucks have made similar commitments in recent months, giving various time frames.

Mercy for Animals president Nathan Runkle, in a separate statement Friday, described the Egg Farmers timeline as “simply outrageous… If egg producers truly care about animal welfare, they shouldn’t allow animals to languish in crowded, filthy cages for decades on end.”

The two-decade target is intended to protect farmers from financial hardship, as non-conventional systems are more expensive, Pelissero said.

Canadian farmers will move to several alternatives, including larger cages with amenities like nesting boxes and perches; housing that allow hens access to the entire barn floor; and farms that allow them outdoors.

The Humane Society is disappointed Canadian farmers aren’t phasing out cages entirely as the difference in welfare between birds raised in any type of cage compared with other methods is “night and day,” Thurston said.

Pelissero said there are downsides to any system. Chickens that have too much freedom can peck each other to death.

Canada, which manages supply and prices, produces eggs mostly for its domestic market. Prices paid to farmers reflect costs of production, meaning that egg buyers and possibly consumers will absorb higher prices, Pelissero said.

Most of a farmer’s cost of production is from feed, however.

— Rod Nickel is a Reuters correspondent covering the agriculture and mining sectors from Winnipeg. Includes files from AGCanada.com Network staff.

CORRECTION, Feb. 9, 2016: A previous version of this story misidentified Manitoba Egg Farmers as “Manitoba Egg Producers.” We regret the error.

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Restaurant Brands International, the parent firm for the two chains since their merger in late 2014, announced Monday it will move to 100 per cent cage-free eggs for all Tim Hortons and Burger King stores in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico by 2025.

Oakville, Ont.-based RBI said Monday it’s also “committed to transitioning to 100 per cent cage-free eggs globally” but did not give a timeline for that move.

The company also said it “continues to develop our sustainability framework and broader animal welfare strategy for release later in 2016.”

The chains’ egg-based menu offerings include Tim Hortons’ B.E.L.T. bagels, breakfast sandwiches and breakfast wraps and Burger King’s Croissan’wiches, breakfast biscuits, breakfast muffins, hash brown burritos and Ultimate Breakfast Platter.

RBI said Monday its “global commitment is to improve animal welfare in our supply chain. While we are not directly involved in the raising, handling, transportation or processing of animals, we consider animal welfare to apply to all aspects of farm animal care within our supply chain.”

Tim Hortons had set a target in 2012, before the RBI merger, to source at least 10 per cent of its eggs from producers using “enriched hen housing systems” by the end of the following year.

The company said at the time its 10 per cent pledge on eggs alone would represent “significantly more than 10 million eggs.”

Sayara Thurston, campaign manager with the Canadian arm of Humane Society International, described the company’s announcement Monday in a separate release as “tremendous news for millions of animals.

“Timmie’s joining the cage-free movement is a clear signal that the future of Canadian egg production must be cage-free.”

RBI also said Monday it would “continue engaging with our partners at the Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International to better understand this issue and others like it.”

Josey Kitson, executive director for World Animal Protection Canada, called the move “the most substantial cage-free sourcing commitment made by a Canadian restaurant chain we’ve seen to date.”

Such a pledge, she said, “will positively impact the lives of more than 650,000 laying hens in Canada alone.”

Across Canada, WAPC said, over 28 million laying hens are kept in conventional battery cages with “little room to stretch their wings or move around freely.”

Conventional cage systems have been in use in North America since the 1920s, billed as a way to improve egg production, efficiency and bird biosecurity, provide all birds with equal access to food and water, limit hens’ exposure to pathogens in manure, prevent violent pecking between hens and protect against predators.

However, cage housing has come under increasing criticism over the past few decades, particularly for the small space afforded per hen and for the cages’ limits on birds’ natural behaviours such as walking around, wing flapping, body shakes, nesting, roosting, perching, scratching, foraging and stretching.

“With this announcement by Tim Hortons, it’s never been clearer that the days are numbered for egg factory farmers who pack birds in cages so small they can’t walk, spread their wings, or engage in other natural behaviours,” Nathan Runkle, president of Mercy for Animals, said in a separate release.

RBI’s move, the group noted, follows similar announcements on egg sourcing in recent months by chains such as Subway, McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Starbucks.

“It’s high time the rest of the food industry, including Swiss Chalet and Harvey’s, acknowledged that cramming birds into cages barely larger than their bodies is cruel and has no place in a civilized society,” Runkle said. — AGCanada.com Network

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Formed in 2012 by Kraft Foods’ spinoff of its grocery business, including the Christie and Nabisco cookie and cracker lines, Mondelez joins a slew of companies shifting to cage-free eggs amid pressure from consumers and animal-rights groups.

The company, which already uses cage-free eggs in all of its European chocolate brands as well as in its biscuit products sold in Belgium and the Netherlands, also said it would switch to cage-free eggs for all its products sold in Europe by 2025.

“We ultimately want all eggs to be produced cage-free, and we’ll continue to advance conversations with suppliers to establish timelines for cage-free production in other regions, when we have evidence that commercially viable supplies are available,” Jonathan Horrell, the company’s director for sustainability, said Friday in a release.

The decision comes at a time when the food industry is under pressure from groups such as the Humane Society of the United States, Mercy for Animals and World Animal Protection, which have successfully lobbied many companies to adopt animal welfare practices.

Both General Mills, the maker of Betty Crocker cake mixes, and Kellogg said last year they would source 100 per cent cage-free eggs by 2025.

Fast-food companies have made similar announcements. McDonald’s said in September that its 16,000 U.S. and Canadian restaurants would serve only eggs laid by cage-free chicken within 10 years, while Burger King has committed to using such eggs by 2017.

— Reporting for Reuters by Ramkumar Iyer in Bangalore. Includes files from AGCanada.com Network staff.

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Subway, which already serves eggs laid by free-range hens at its outlets in Europe and eggs laid by cage-free hens in Australia, said it has already begun using such eggs in select areas in the U.S. and Canada.

The restaurant chain, owned by Doctors Associates Inc., has more than 30,000 outlets in North America.

The decision comes at a time when the food industry is under pressure from groups including the Humane Society of the United States, Mercy for Animals and World Animal Protection, which have successfully lobbied many companies to adopt animal welfare practices.

Both General Mills and Kellogg said earlier this year they will source 100 per cent cage-free eggs by 2025.

Fast-food companies have made similar announcements. McDonald’s said in September that its 16,000 U.S. and Canadian restaurants would serve only eggs laid by cage-free chickens within 10 years, while rival Burger King has committed to using such eggs by 2017.

Starbucks said in October that it would also make the switch in North America within five years.

Subway’s recent policy changes in livestock sourcing also included a pledge to serve only proteins from antibiotic-free sources in the U.S. by 2025.

In its release Monday, the company said it “continues to monitor layer hen housing research to identify future, best-practice menu and ingredient solutions that meet the highest standards of animal welfare.”

— Reporting for Reuters by Ramkumar Iyer in Bangalore. Includes files from AGCanada.com Network staff.

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