Outdoor access for laying hens provides welfare benefits beyond what indoor systems can achieve. Understanding what good outdoor access looks like helps consumers make informed choices.
Outdoor access for laying hens provides welfare benefits that go beyond what indoor systems can achieve regardless of enrichment. Hens that range outdoors engage in foraging on natural substrates, dustbathing in dry soil, and exploring varied environmental stimuli that even well-enriched indoor systems cannot replicate. However, free-range label requirements in many countries are met by providing access to outdoors regardless of whether hens actually use it — if outdoor areas are large, vegetation-free mudfields that hens avoid, the welfare benefit is minimal. Good outdoor access requires vegetated ranges with natural shelter that encourages hens to venture out. Consumer choices that reward genuinely good free-range systems drive welfare improvement beyond the label minimum.