The global transition from enriched colony cages to cage-free aviary systems for laying hens presents genuine welfare challenges during the conversion process and in poorly managed aviary facilities.
The cage-free transition represents genuine welfare progress for laying hens, but the assumption that any aviary system automatically provides better welfare than any cage system is an oversimplification. Poorly managed aviary systems can produce higher mortality, more keel bone fractures, and worse resource access than well-managed enriched colony systems. The welfare gains from cage-free housing are real — freedom to move, perch, and dustbathe are significant — but they require system design quality, pullet rearing training, and management skill to be realised. Retailers and brands that mandate cage-free without providing guidance or incentives for management quality may inadvertently drive welfare problems in the transition period.