The shift from battery cages to cage-free systems for laying hens represents welfare progress, but cage-free is not welfare-complete. Perch provision — a seemingly simple addition — addresses one of the most fundamental behavioural needs of hens and significantly improves health and welfare outcomes.
The irony of keel bone fractures in cage-free systems is that moving hens from cages to barn or free-range environments can increase bone fracture rates if perch and space design are poor. A hen with a fractured keel bone experiences chronic pain from a broken bone that never heals — she continues to lay eggs, eat, and move, but in discomfort for the remainder of her laying life. The welfare improvement of cage-free must be accompanied by attention to perch quality, collision risk reduction, and environmental design. Simple, cheap solutions — padded perch covers, lower perch heights for heavy breeds, wider resting platforms — can meaningfully reduce fracture rates. This is an area where welfare science has clear answers that are not yet implemented at scale due to inadequate regulatory standards.