Hatching a plan: conventional housing, new systems prioritize animal welfare.

• Author: Myers, Ella
• Position: NEWS

Abraham Frey's 450 free-range hens live out their lives in a spacious barn, and run through green fields in the summer.

The egg farmer from the Township of Sables-Spanish River has been raising chickens since the 1980s and always prioritized the chickens' health, and he thinks consumers are starting to as well.

"It's healthier for the chickens to be running around than to be in cages," said Frey. "People are thinking more of the health of the animal. If the health of the animal is there, the health of the product is going to be there."

More egg farmers will be housing their chickens, like Frey's, after an announcement by the Egg Farmers of Canada of an industry-wide shift away from conventional and crowded housing.

Going forward, new buildings will have to fit into one of the alternative housing models: free range, free run, aviary or enriched.

Roger Pelissero is a third-generation egg farmer in St. Anns, near St. Catharines, and represents Ontario at the Egg Farmers of Canada. His 16,000 hens transitioned to new housing three years ago.

"I think it's fantastic because my son just came back to the farm full time last year and it sets the course for how eggs will be produced in the future," said Pelissero. "We are taking care of the hens."

Pelissero said there will be a slight increase in the cost of eggs to consumers, but stressed that housing does not account for a large amount of the cost of raising hens.

Bill Mitchell from the Egg Farmers of Ontario said his farmers replace their barns every 15 to 20 years, and have to go through his organization to have equipment approved. The transition is estimated to take 20 years. Mitchell said this will help mitigate any...