Forced molting is used in egg production to restart laying cycles. The welfare costs of food deprivation methods and more humane alternatives reflect ongoing debates in laying hen management.
Feed withdrawal molting subjects tens of millions of hens to several days of enforced starvation — a direct and significant welfare harm. Hens deprived of food show acute hunger stress, increased aggression, and elevated mortality, particularly among already-compromised individuals. The practice extends profitable laying by inducing feather regrowth and reproductive reset, but at a clear welfare cost that alternatives can avoid. Low-nutrient diet alternatives achieve similar production outcomes without enforced starvation, making feed withdrawal a welfare harm that is technically unnecessary.