Compassion in World Farming Patron, Deborah Meaden, has this week launched a petition calling on the UK Government to ban the use of all cages for farmed animals. This follows the European Commission’s plans, announced last month, to introduce legislation that would phase out cages by 2027.

Every year across the UK, millions of farmed animals are kept in cages, unable to express their natural behaviours and enduring immense suffering. Most cages are barren, cramped and deny the animals space to move freely.

TV favourite and petition creator, Deborah Meaden, said: “More than half of the UK’s mother pigs give birth confined in prison-like farrowing crates and over a third of the UK’s egg laying hens are kept in cages. That’s around 16 million farm animals in the UK, every year, suffering behind bars. It’s hard to believe that this is still legal.”

“These inhumane systems cannot and must not be the future. Rather than falling behind our European neighbours, we should be leading the way in a move towards more humane farming systems. It’s time for the UK Government to take action and do the right thing. It’s time to End the Cage Age!”

The Commission has also indicated that it will look to ban the import of food from caged systems. This means that inaction from the UK Government won’t just result in the country lagging behind its European neighbours, it may also add bureaucracy to trade with the UK’s nearest and largest export market, and could ultimately damage the entire British farming industry.

Sarah Moyes, Senior Campaign Manager at Compassion World Farming, commented: “We are extremely grateful to Deborah for shining a light on this important petition, which is absolutely crucial to bringing about the legislative change that is needed to end the use of cages across the UK once and for all. Unless the UK Government acts now, animal welfare standards here will fall significantly behind those of the EU.”

The full petition text and live petition can be viewed here.

For more information, please email Media.Team@ciwf.org or call 01483 521 615.