It’s one of the buzziest trends taking place today: food titans across the country are making pledges to switch to cage-free eggs. And today, you can add Disney to the growing list.
Open-Face Bacon and Egg Sandwich for Breakfast at Be Our Guest
Disney has announced its pledge to make the transition to cage-free eggs by the end of 2016. The switchover will be effective for the company’s US-based theme parks as well as Disney Cruise Lines.
If you’re only coming lately to this cause, we’ll bring you up to speed. While the vast majority of eggs available in the marketplace are laid by hens that are penned in cages, cage-free eggs come from hens that are allowed more freedom. Cage-free operations are generally considered to be more humane in their treatment of the animals.
Scrambled Eggs on the Buffet at The Wave…of American Flavors
The move on Disney’s part apparently came about after the non-profit Humane League requested earlier this month that Disney disclose their cage-free egg policy. Disney joins other food giants, like McDonald’s, Walmart, and Kroger in moving to the sourcing of cage-free eggs in their food operations. However, Disney stands out for its quick timeline on the switch. Other companies say that the changeover may take up to a decade to accomplish.
I’m really interested in hearing from all of you about this move. What do you think about Disney’s move to use only cage-free eggs by the end of this year? Leave a comment and tell me your thoughts!
Source: Fortune.com
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THIS. IS. AWESOME. I’m thrilled Disney is moving toward humanely sourcing its food supplies and I hope they continue to look at current and implement kinder practices.
It’s Disney Cruise Line. It’s not plural.
This is so so so wonderful! The Humane League is an amazing organization doing fantastic work to lessen animal cruelty. So proud of Disney taking this step and hoping that going completely free roam and adding more vegetarian options is next. Yayyyy thanks for reporting on this =)
I’m certain that “tortured” chickens produce tastier eggs…so I’m not happy about this at all.
Nice and interesting. So proud of Disney taking this step and hoping that going completely free roam and adding more vegetarian options is next.
Many thanks
Good! I buy this type of egg at home and with a large consumer such as Disney buying them, more producers will be encouraged to switch.
Excellent news !!! Thank you Disney !!!
Not to be a Debbie Downer, but cage-free doesn’t really mean the chickens are treated any better. They’re still over-crowded into buildings with little to no access to any outdoor area.
Disney is a business and is entitled to make the choices it feels will best suit its customers. I’m certain the vast majority of people will be in favor of the change. I’m also certain those same people will be complaining about how greedy Disney is when the cost of the breakfast buffets and every egg-containing dish on property increases at the end of the year. Cage free means the hens have more room, but that means larger spaces and large spaces cost more money. Disney certainly isn’t going to absorb the cost of this change and I don’t expect them to, but consumers need to realize that more humane choices lead to higher prices.
This is great news! Those of us who sincerely care about animal welfare will not mind a small price rise to pay for a chicken living more comfortably 🙂
I’m not certain how I feel about the “cage-free” craze. I grew up in a semi-rural community and I have raised chickens and, here’s the thing: the term “pecking order” is very literal for chickens. We only had a couple so, it wasn’t a big deal but, some of my friends who had a dozen or more had real issues trying to keep the chickens from pecking each other. They often had to move some to another area or re-orient how they fed them to maintain chicken harmony. If that’s what it was like for a dozen chickens, what is it like when you have hundreds?
I would agree that those little cages don’t seem all that humane but, I am honestly not sure that the chickens are happier being let loose in a huge group where they could be pecked to death. I know that, in some places, they actually clip the chickens’ beaks to keep them from pecking each other and, that doesn’t seem very humane either. I definitely appreciate Disney trying to do the right thing the best they know how here and, I personally buy cage-free eggs in the hope that it’s more humane but, I’m very hesitant to take this up as a huge cause without more information. A lot of these issues are more complicated than they seem.
“Cage free” sounds well and good, but being a part of the poultry community, i can tell you that just because a bird is cage free doesn’t mean it lives a “happy” life. It will likely roam the concrete floor of a huge warehouse and fight for feed among hundreds of other birds. Cage free is a step in the right direction, but the jury is still out on whether or not that is truly more humane.
“Cage Free” is complete marketing BS. (comment edited to remove link.)
I’m glad to hear this. I hope they expand their selections of vegetarian and vegan foods as well.