Source: MIL-OSI Submissions
Source: SAFE NZ
Current polling suggests the Labour party will need the Greens to form a new Government and this could mean big gains for animals.
SAFE CEO Debra Ashton said the two parties have already agreed on a phaseout of cruel colony cages in previous election campaigns.
“Both the Labour party and Green party promised to phase out colony cages in 2014 and 2017, so they can finally fulfil that promise together,” said Ashton.
The Green party’s election manifesto states they will ban live export and Labour leader Jacinda Ardern has also expressed concerns about the trade.
When asked whether or not she would ban live export on the AM Show this morning, she said she thinks the trade is highly problematic, with animal welfare and reputational issues.
“These should be easy decisions for a Labour/Green Government and while there is a lot more to be done on animal welfare, this is a good start.”
SAFE is New Zealand’s leading animal rights organisation.
We’re creating a future that ensures the rights of animals are respected. Our core work empowers society to make kinder choices for ourselves, animals and our planet.
– On 1 January 2023 battery cages will be illegal in New Zealand and will be replaced by colony cages.
– A 2020 Colmar Brunton poll found 76% of New Zealanders were opposed to colony cages.
– In 2014 the Labour Party committed to banning the caging of layer hens. The Green Party’s current policy is to phase out intensive farming, which includes the caging of hens.
– Colony cages only give a hen a living space of about the size of an A4 piece of paper. Up to 80 hens may live in each colony cage. The hens cannot move around freely, stretch their wings or perform innate and natural behaviours such as dustbathing, foraging or nesting.
– Hens are intelligent, curious and socially complex animals with a strong need to carry out their natural behaviour. When free to roam outdoors, a hen will spend her days scratching at the ground, searching for food, dust bathing, stretching her wings and basking in the sun.
– Colony cages are now being phased out in parts of Europe, including Switzerland, Luxembourg, Germany, the Czech Republic, the Walloon Region of Belgium and Austria. In the USA, seven states have banned the sale and production of cage eggs.
– SAFE’s cage-free campaign work will lead to over two thousand business locations no longer purchasing cage eggs. Over the next five to seven years we will see 650+ supermarket locations, 200+ café locations, 350+ hotels, 800+ restaurant locations, three leading foodservice groups and 300+ sites including rest homes, schools and university dorms ditch cage eggs. Some have already met their commitments.
– The Open Wing Alliance has collectively secured cage-free policies from around 2,000 companies from around the world.
