Pig Gestation Crate Transition Progress

Gestation crates confine pregnant sows in spaces too small to turn around. The UK banned them in 1999, but global progress is slow and supply chain imports from lower-welfare systems remain common.

Key Facts

Gestation crates are banned in the UK but still used in the EU, US, and most of Asia
US states including California and Florida have passed ballot initiatives banning gestation crates
Major food companies including McDonald's have pledged to source from gestation-crate-free systems
Group housing for sows allows natural movement and social behaviour
Aggression management in group-housed sows requires good design and farmer training
An estimated 60-70% of the world's sows are still kept in gestation crates

Welfare Considerations

Gestation crates cause profound welfare harm through chronic confinement preventing all natural movement. Sows in crates cannot turn around, engage in rooting or nesting behaviour, or socialise. This confinement for weeks or months causes muscle wastage, joint problems, and severe psychological distress evidenced by stereotypic behaviours including bar biting. The UK's 1999 ban demonstrates that group housing is commercially viable with appropriate management. The global scale of crate use - hundreds of millions of animals - makes accelerating the transition one of the highest-impact farm welfare interventions.

What You Can Do

Choose pork from UK farms with gestation-crate-free certification
Ask your supermarket to require gestation-crate-free pork from all supply chains including imports
Support Humane Society of the United States corporate campaigns on gestation crates
Back state and national legislation to ban gestation crates globally
Reduce pork consumption to lower demand for globally produced crate-raised pigs