Countdown cuts caged eggs from five supermarkets
Monday, 24 May 2021
Countdown has removed cage-laid eggs from the shelves in five stores as it moves towards its goal of being completely cage-free by 2025.
The supermarket chain announced in 2017 that it would sell only cage-free eggs by the end of 2024 in the North Island and the end of 2025 in the South Island.
From Monday, customers at Countdown’s Milford, Waiheke Island and Grey Lynn stores in Auckland, and Crofton Downs and Newtown stores in Wellington, will find only free-range and barn-laid eggs as the company begins to roll out the change.
Countdown spokeswoman Kiri Hannifin said the company had been working closely with its egg farmers to increase the supply of cage-free eggs.
**READ MORE:
* New rules on hen cages and rising feed costs lift egg prices
* We want free range eggs right up to the point of buying them
* Countdown chooses 10 supermarkets to go plastic bag free, rest to follow
**
The roll-out across the initial stores would be critical to help understand future demand, she said.
“Animal welfare is a key concern for our business and our customers but we are highly aware that people make purchasing decisions based on a range of factors, including price and what they are using the eggs for.
“While moving five stores to completely cage-free is a big shift, in these particular stores around 90 per cent of customers are already telling us that cage-free is important to them, so we hope they will embrace the change to completely cage-free.”
While 2025 might seem a long way off, Countdown had to work closely with egg producers to be sure it had enough future volume to achieve the end goal, Hannifin said.
“Eggs are a staple food and affordability is a really important consideration. As volumes of barn and free-range eggs continue to increase, this will in turn improve access and affordability for customers.
“We are committed to working with egg farmers to improve animal welfare standards and also help ensure eggs remain as affordable as possible.”
Countdown supplier William Sandle, from Otaika Valley Free Range Eggs, said he had been working to increase the company’s supply of free-range eggs since 2015 and was pleased to see the five-store trial start.
“This reinforces for us Countdown’s commitment to proactively move towards cage-free as the supply and availability of these eggs increase.”
Battery cages, which allow 550 square centimetres per hen, are due to become illegal in 2023.
Colony cages will remain legal, however New Zealand’s major supermarkets have all pledged to sell only cage-free eggs by 2027 at the latest.