The EU ban on conventional battery cages for laying hens in 2012 represented a landmark welfare achievement; enriched cages and the remaining challenge of cage-free transition continue to define welfare progress.
The battery cage ban was a historic welfare achievement but not the end point its advocates sought. Enriched cages provide more space and some facilities for nest use and perching, but remain fundamentally restrictive environments. True welfare improvement for laying hens requires full cage-free systems that allow locomotion, dust bathing, and social behaviour expression. Corporate cage-free pledges represent the next major transition, though implementation pace remains a concern.