Global campaign urges Hilton Hotel Group and Best Western to ditch cage eggs

Hotel groups, Hilton and Best Western, are being urged by animal protection groups across the globe to phase out cage eggs as part of a campaign launched by the Open Wing Alliance.

The Open Wing Alliance (OWA), of which New Zealand animal rights organisation SAFE is a member, is an international alliance of animal protection groups, who have launched a campaign asking Hilton and Best Western to use exclusively cage-free eggs. The campaign launched today in Poland, where 46 animal protection organisations from 40 countries are protesting outside Best Western Hotel Portos and Hilton Warsaw Hotel and Convention Centre.

As part of this global campaign, the OWA has created a joint petition urging Best Western to drop cage eggs from its supply chain worldwide.

SAFE spokesperson Will Appelbe says New Zealand and global trends are swinging away from cage eggs, and businesses need to adapt to the changing landscape.

"People are demanding better than the cruel confinement of hens in cages and businesses need to adapt to the changing landscape," says Mr Appelbe.

"Countless businesses, all the major supermarkets, and major wholesalers Bidfood have pledged to go 100 percent cage free. Recently, Service Foods has joined that list of companies. That’s a significant size of the egg market."

Hilton Hotel Group announced in 2015 that all hotels across five of its brands in 19 counties would switch to using cage-free eggs by the end of 2017. They’ve failed to follow through with this commitment in several countries.

"Hens kept in battery and colony cage systems have barely enough room to move around, often times with less than the size of an iPad to stand on. It’s unacceptable for major global companies to stall on such an important animal welfare issue," says Mr Appelbe.

"We urge Hilton Hotel Group and Best Western produce a commitment and a timeline to go 100% cage free."

ENDS

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