General Mills working toward using cage-free eggs

MINNEAPOLIS — General Mills is working toward using only cage-free eggs in its products, joining several other large food manufacturers and retailers.

General Mills’ cage-free egg goals were announced Tuesday as part of declaration of broad animal welfare goals for its supply chain.

The company, maker of everything from cereal to soup and cake mixes, said it supports “five freedoms” for all animals in its supply chain: freedom from hunger, discomfort, fear and pain, as well as freedom to engage in normal patterns of animal behavior.

“Certainly, the highlight of this announcement is the commitment to (work toward) 100 percent cage-free eggs,” said Wayne Pacelle, head of the Humane Society of the United States, which has worked with General Mills and other large companies on animal welfare principles.

In the U.S. egg industry, several hens usually share a small, cramped cage, which animal rights activists have long fought against due the birds’ lack of ability to move. The cage-free segment of the egg business is still relatively small, but it’s growing.

Kellogg, Nestle, Starbucks, Walmart, Sodexo and Aramark — the last two both large institutional food providers — have all made public pledges to move away from the cage system in their egg supply chains. The process will likely take years as the egg industry has a huge investment in the current system.

Potentially making things more difficult, the Upper Midwest’s egg industry is currently in turmoil after avian flu wiped out more than 30 million birds this spring.

“We recognize the current avian influenza outbreak has been deeply disruptive of the U.S. egg supply,” General Mills said in a press statement. “As the industry works to rebuild its supply chain, we will work with suppliers to determine a path and reasonable timeline towards (the cage-free) commitment.”

General Mills, based in the Minneapolis suburb of Golden Valley, said it’s also working along with other companies and farmers associations to “understand the issues of pain relief for dairy cows, including de-horning, tail docking and castration.” The company said it supports breeding programs to develop naturally hornless cattle, an approach that has worked in the beef industry.

General Mills already in 2013 declared its support for alternatives to housing sows in gestation crates, essentially cages that keep breeder pigs from moving. Many other companies have done the same, and the pork industry has begun moving towards group housing for sows.