The global shift to cage-free laying hen systems has delivered major welfare improvements but also introduced new challenges including keel bone fractures and range use barriers.
The cage-free transition represents genuine welfare progress that is incomplete rather than perfect. Moving hens from battery cages to cage-free systems improves welfare substantially by allowing natural behaviors — dustbathing, perching, foraging, wing flapping — that cages completely prevent. However, cage-free systems have introduced new welfare challenges. Keel bone fractures from poorly designed perches cause pain in a significant proportion of hens. Feather pecking persists without the physical barrier of cage dividers. Range use barriers prevent some hens from accessing the outdoor areas that make free-range better than barn systems. The path to better cage-free welfare is clear — better perch design, vegetation cover, multiple pop-holes, appropriate breed genetics — but requires ongoing investment and improvement.