Free-range egg labelling gives a misleading impression of outdoor access quality — many free-range hens rarely venture outside due to inadequate range conditions.
The welfare benefit of free-range only materialises when hens actually use outdoor range — and this is far from guaranteed. Bare, exposed ranges offer little motivation for hens to venture out; vegetation, shelter, and scattered food rewards create ranges that birds actively want to use. Hens using good-quality range exhibit more natural foraging, dustbathing and social behaviour than those confined to the indoor barn despite technical outdoor access. The gap between free-range label and free-range reality is significant, and consumer choice should be guided by range quality standards rather than minimum legal compliance.