Latest Research

Here is a link to some research hot off the presses.



http://www.ltz.de/en/news/lohmann-information/4.Ruhnke_Free-range-egg-production-in-Australia-2_2015.php

It's a very long article on the state of "free range" production in Australia.  Free Range production is more difficult than cage egg production with a lot of special problems very well set out by Dr Isabelle Rubnke in her analysis.

CARBON FOOTPRINT OF EGGS

CARBON FOOTPRINT

 Cage egg production has the lowest carbon footprint of the various production methods and egg production

in general is one of the highest efficiencies of all the high quality protein production methods.

 Here is a link to the latest research on the carbon footprint of eggs financed by the research fund supported by the Australian Egg Corporation Limited.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7Zabk5oBwo&feature=youtu.be

NOTHING LEFT UNSAID

Forced changes in egg production – not all they’re cracked up to be

Tamworth egg farmer Bede Burke produces eggs and chickens, and also has broadacre cropping and cattle on 3,500 acres. He was planning to move into free range egg production, until he heard about the avian influenza outbreak in Young in October 2013. He shares his thoughts about the potential hazards ahead for egg producers. 

In Young, the disease spread from wild migratory birds to paddocks the free range hens had access to, and all the birds in the property – 200,000 free range and 250,000 caged totaling more than 450,000 hens – had to be destroyed.

Once you have an exotic disease, it’s notifiable and you’re no longer in control of your farm.

We watched that happen, and realised that even a one percent chance of outbreak is untenable. We can control the health of our caged birds in their current conditions, and we can protect them from disease and predators.

Sustainable productivity under threat

We have invested a great deal of time and money into developing a sustainable, fully-integrated business. Our grain goes into the chicken feed, and the manure contributes to soil health. We understand that, like all farmers, we needs to minimise our carbon footprint and improve efficiency to meet the growing demands for food.

But all this could be under threat, with moves from the major supermarket chains and some food outlets to eliminate caged eggs from the menu.

Woolworths has announced that it will no longer stock caged eggs by 2018, and in September it ceased stocking caged eggs in the ACT completely. Coles has already removed caged eggs from its home brand offer.

Yet 60 percent of the eggs sold in Australia are still caged eggs.

Because we sell eggs via wholesale channels, we do things a little differently. We ship 80 pallets a week, or 30 million eggs a year, to about a dozen customers. We pack by age groups, keeping the eggs from our older breeders separate. This gives us and our customers a lot more flexibility.

Demand for affordable eggs

From what I’ve seen, consumers still want choice, and there is still a market for price point eggs. As Woolworths in ACT found with its barn laid category. It wasn’t selling at $4.69 per dozen, so the supermarket made successive price movements down to $3.19 to generate sales. I believe this is a test case for new pricing Woolworths may consider adopting across all its supermarkets.

Risk of disease and illness

Victorian Premier Denis Napthine[1], a former veterinarian, has also said publicly he has no objection to eggs from caged hens, if the birds have “appropriate welfare conditions.” The Australian Veterinary Association’s policy is that commercial egg production systems should provide for the health, nutrition and psychological wellbeing of the hens.

I know that egg production moved from floor to cage in the 1960s for good reasons. We can now control the environment for our birds to the extent that we haven't needed to use antibiotics for more than thirty years.

Yet free range farmers tell me they’re running out of options to deal with diseases such as fowl cholera, spotty liver, enteritis, and parasites. The problems with free range farming can be immense – not to mention the regulatory requirements.

I can provide every one of my 106,000 laying hens with the exact nutritional balance they need to produce well and be healthy. It’s a recipe packed with local ingredients including grain grown and milled on our property, protein meals comprising canola, cotton seed meal with vitamins, minerals and the essential amino acids added.

You can't control that with free range. Ironically, a unique cause of death in new free range chickens is due to excess grass consumption, leading to grass compaction. The domestic hen is not a ruminant; they do not thrive in these conditions

Australia’s egg producers made significant investment in caged production facilities in the late 1990s, and with small groups (no more than six) per cage we can manage the birds more easily.

We have eliminated the impact of broodiness as the eggs naturally roll away from the hen in the cage. We can keep them at a comfortable temperature whether there’s a heatwave or frost outside. We remove the manure twice a week, so for the first time we’re farming without flies. You can't do any of that in free range.

Academic research into the health and happiness of hens also indicates free range is not necessarily best. The University of Bristol’s Veterinary College in the UK[2] compared hens in conventional cages, furnished cages (with nests and perches), barns and free-range. The study found that poor animal husbandry had a much bigger impact than the type of housing – and the lowest prevalence of problems occurred in hens in furnished cages, not free range.

Better for humans, and the environment

It may seem counter-intuitive, but research also indicates the quality of a caged egg is better. A 2002 University of New England study[3] found good, consistent diet and care were the main ingredients for a quality egg, and keeping the eggs clean is a big challenge for free range and barn laid eggs – with a high risk of food wastage.

Caged eggs also create a smaller carbon footprint. Because it’s controlled, it takes less energy to produce a dozen eggs. In free range we see feed consumption go up 20 percent but the output is actually lower – and highly variable when the temperature changes.

As Chair of the Egg Committee for the NSW Farmers’ Association, I work closely with the Australian Egg Corporation Limited and I’m worried by the domino effect a decision like Woolworth’s could cause. We want to work with industry and government to find better a solution. 

The impact of the decision by Coles and Woolworths is already massive. It’s changed the mindset in our industry. We can’t invest in new infrastructure; we can't grow this part of our business. It’s disappointing to say there has been no engagement with industry in making this decision.

 You can have healthy, happy caged birds – you just need to be close to them, and do whatever you can to alleviate stress. This is not just a debate about free range versus caged. This is about the future of our industry, and the way we produce a primary food source for Australia.

A butterfly effect

If major retailers switch to ‘free range only’ there are consequences beyond the hens:

·         The cost of eggs becomes prohibitive for low-income families

·         Fast food franchisees can no longer source eggs locally, increasing food miles and impacting smaller local producers

·         The amount of energy needed to produce a dozen eggs will rise

·         More birds will be affected by predators and disease (and the use of antibiotics could rise again)

---

[1] Source: http://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CB8QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.goodfood.com.au%2Fgood-food%2Ffood-news%2Fnapthine-has-no-problem-with-eggs-from-caged-hens-20140905-3exwu.html&ei=EXNRVLPzEIqB8gX9_oH4BQ&usg=AFQjCNGZzYI3rHqIAdPxJl8KV3qybHMa4g&sig2=osGLQFo5GAOBphiKdaR4fg&bvm=bv.78597519,d.dGc

[2] Source:

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-24915471, http://www.farmonline.com.au/blogs/agribuzz-with-david-leyonhjelm/free-doesnt-mean-happy/2679362.aspx

[3] Source: http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2002/10/11/696876.htm?site=science/tricks&topic=latest

Latest from Britain

Long Term Sustainability of "Free Range" under question.

Here is a report from the Daily  Mail  Science Reporter.  The report simply adds to the mounting evidence against free range being better for the chooks.  Here is the report so you can judge for yourself.

Free-range hens 'are least healthy': Chickens more likely to catch disease, get injured or die early than those kept in cages

• Eggs from free range hens now make up 45 per cent of the British market
• Recent regulations mean chicken houses are no longer tiny squalid cages
• ‘Supermarkets love free range because they make a bigger margin’ - vet
• 10% of ducks carry bird flu posing threat to chickens that is hard to control

By Ben Spencer, Daily Mail Science Reporter

Published: 09:00 AEST, 10 September 2014 | Updated: 13:12 AEST, 10 September 2014

Free range chickens may not live the comfortable lives we have been led to believe, according to a leading British vet.

Research shows that chickens which are allowed to roam free are in fact more likely to catch disease, get injured and die earlier than those kept in cages.

Eggs from free range hens now make up 45 per cent of the British market – a huge increase from just 1 per cent in 1980.

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Cluck happy... or not: Chickens allowed to roam free in open fields in fact die sooner and are much more likely to catch diseases

Supermarkets and celebrity chefs would have us believe that free range chickens are happier, healthier and live more natural lives than those in battery farms.

But chickens allowed to roam free in open fields in fact die sooner and are much more likely to catch diseases, according to Barry Thorp of the Royal School of Veterinary Studies in Edinburgh.

They are also more likely to break their bones because they have not been bred to survive an outdoor life, he said.

Recent regulations mean that chicken houses are no longer the tiny squalid cages they once were.

Dr Thorp, speaking during a debate on chicken welfare at the British Science Festival in Birmingham yesterday, said: ‘I think that for long-term sustainability, free range systems do not work.

‘I’m certainly very comfortable with buying eggs from furnished cages. I have no issues with that at all.

‘I think free range has some merits but it also has many problems as well. I don’t see it having a long-term sustainability and that worries me.’

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Ten per cent of ducks carry bird flu, posing a huge threat to chickens that is very hard to control

Dr Thorp said the boom in free range has been driven by the idea that chickens live better lives – a message that has been amplified by large retailers.

‘Supermarkets love free range because they can make a bigger margin,’ he said.

But chickens kept in large fields are far more likely to pass diseases to each other and on to wild birds and ducks.

He warned that the increase in the number of free-range chickens raises the risk of a major epidemic of bird flu.

‘We have been lucky in this country that we haven’t had a major bird flu outbreak,’ he said.

Dr Thorp, a specialised poultry vet, added: ‘Having a physical barrier between chickens works – cages stop disease because if nothing goes between A and B, disease does not travel between A and B.

‘When different chickens and wild birds come into contact with each other and their droppings, disease spreads.

‘As a vet I make far more money from farmers who have got birds kept free range than those kept in cages.’

The spread of disease between chickens in fields and ducks in nearby rivers is a particular risk, he said.

Ten per cent of ducks carry bird flu, posing a huge threat to chickens that is very hard to control.

Germany and Holland have been very wary of free range systems because of the bird flu risk, instead opting for barn rearing models in which chickens are easier to control.

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Germany and Holland have been very wary of free range systems because of the bird flu risk, instead opting for barn rearing models in which chickens are easier to control

Dr Victoria Sandilands, of Scotland’s Rural College, said free range birds have a mortality rate of 8 to 10 per cent, far higher than caged hens’ death rate of 2 to 4 per cent.

Free range hens are also twice as likely to have fractured bones as those kept in cages.

Cages are also far better than they used to be, she said.

She added: ‘Ten years ago cages used to have a wire floor with access to food and water but nothing else.

‘From 2012 only furnished or enriched cages have been permitted across the EU.’

Cages now have to contain nesting areas, separated from the rest of the cage, with a ‘scratch floor’, a perching area for every hen and more than seven square metres per chicken.

As a vet I make far more money from farmers who have got birds kept free range than those kept in cages 

Barry Thorp of the Royal School of Veterinary Studies

She told the Birmingham audience: ‘Furnished cages provide a safe, clean environment, and laying hens are generally physically healthy. The ability to perform many natural behaviours has also improved greatly.’

Mia Fernyhough, senior scientific officer at the RSPCA, admitted that free range farming systems are far from ideal.

‘Free range is more complex so it takes more careful management to do it well,’ she said.

‘There is increased risk of mortality and increased risk of disease and injury.

‘But it can be managed well. Free range has a much, much greater potential for higher welfare
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2749987/Free-range-hens-healthy-Chickens-likely-catch-disease-injured-die-early-kept-cages.html#ixzz3DGeryQEr
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Latest Australian research into a difference between Cage and free range eggs.

Here is a link to a summary of the latest research.

The researchers concluded that cage eggs were better in over-all quality than free range eggs.

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/articles/3110/effect-of-production-system-and-flock-age-on-egg-quality-and-bacterial-load

Cage Egg Production in Queensland

To check out modern cage egg production go this this site.

      http://www.eggfarmers.org.au/caged/default.html

Egg Production and Manure

Sounds like a simple topic but boy is it complex. For each 100 grams of food a hen eats it produces 100 grams of manure.  Doesn't sound like much but to feed the population of Australia with the eggs they want you need at least fifteen million hens and they will produce 1.5 Trillion grams of manure per day or in simpler terms 1,500 tonnes per day or over half a million tonnes of manure per annum.  The good thing about all that manure is that when its produced by hens in cages it can be dealt with in an environmentally responsible manner.  Its collected on manure belts and goes straight into the truck for either composting or spreading directly on land to produce crops.

 Manure is an under rated valuable source of everything a plant needs.  Unfortunately the key ingredients - phosphates, nitrates and potassium can be synthesized and added separately to boost plant growth so carting and processing manure into compost isn't competitive.  With a carbon tax and later the Emission Trading Scheme manure which saves carbon and could be used to store it in soils  should be more competitive.