17 July 2002
Push For Continuation Of Battery Cages Offensive - Greens
Green MP Sue Kedgley is urging New Zealanders to send a clear message to the egg and poultry industry after the industry
Code of Animal Welfare for Layer Hens, released today, called for the indefinite use of battery cages.
"The Code which industry have released today is deeply offensive, and is an affront to hundreds of thousands of New
Zealanders who oppose animal cruelty and who have signed petitions calling for the ban of the battery cage," said Ms
Kedgley.
"It is time the industry entered the 21st Century, and recognised that farming practices which cause animals to endure
lives of suffering in cages is intolerable to the vast majority of New Zealanders. People are pushing for change and the
Greens are determined to see it.
"It is crucial that New Zealanders who oppose these cruel cages speak out strongly and tell industry they must change.
The Greens want to make this an election issue but we need New Zealanders behind us."
Ms Kedgley predicted that New Zealanders would not be fooled by the industry proposal that slightly modified cages, with
an extra 10 centimetres of space for each bird, would somehow improve the conditions of caged hens, and reduce their
suffering.
"It is a ridiculous proposal which will not reduce the suffering of hens, or allow them to display anything like normal
patterns of behaviour. The hens in modified cages will still have less space than an A4 sheet of paper to live their
entire lives in, and this is cruel and unacceptable."
Ms Kedgley said the Green Party wants New Zealand to follow Switzerland and Germany in phasing out all caged hens. In
Germany standard sized cages will be illegal by 2007, and modified cages by 2012.
"The German Green Party Minister of Agriculture has taken a lead in getting chickens out of cages, and the New Zealand
Green Party pledges to do the same."
Sue will launch the Green Party's new Animal Welfare policy at midday today with the symbolic release of three
ex-battery hens on the back lawn of parliament.
Ends