Free-range laying hen systems offer welfare benefits from outdoor access but face specific challenges including range use, disease pressure, and multi-tier housing management.
Free-range systems provide genuine welfare benefits through outdoor access — sunlight, foraging, dust-bathing, and space. However, range use is often lower than assumed. Poorly designed pop-holes, fearful hens, or inadequate range quality mean many birds never leave the house. Welfare-positive free-range requires proactive range management including vegetation cover, shade, and encouragement of birds to use outdoor space.