Cage reform: proposed ban on keeping laying hens, pullets and breeder layers in cages

Published on : 3 Mar 2026

The long-term future of the UK egg industry is at risk.

The Government’s consultation on a ban on caged egg production (including pullet rearing and breeder cages) raises the real prospect of fundamentally and permanently damaging the UK egg industry.

This is not scaremongering or over-reacting. It is inevitable that a ban in the UK will lead to a drastic increase of imported, cage-produced eggs and egg products. It is also very likely that this will include a significant number of eggs that come from hens housed in barren battery cages, outlawed in the UK for more than a decade. These imports will destabilise the market for all eggs, regardless of system of production.

If the Government insists on continuing with this completely unnecessary policy, which will undermine British producers and distort the market, they must also ban imports from systems of production they intend to outlaw. If it's illegal to produce it should be illegal to import, which should also be extended to other foods like quiche.

Your industry needs you. We must act together in a unified show of strength. With the deadline for the consultation on banning Enriched Colony Cage production fast approaching, it is vital that you help the Government understand the real consequences of this proposed policy.

The BEIC is urging everyone to support the future of your industry by acting now and responding to the consultation before 9th March 2026.

Click here to view the consultation.