Government plans to end the production of caged eggs by 2032 will expose the UK to unfair competition from imports and risks moving food production overseas, the egg industry has warned
With figures showing imports of lower welfare eggs from Ukraine increased 27,400% last year the British Egg Industry Council said the total ban on caged eggs in the UK would undermine farmers and further distort the market - while delivering “little meaningful benefit for hens”.
Earlier this week, the government launched two consultations on animal welfare, one to phase out colony systems for egg laying hens by 2032, and another on sheep mutilation practices – castration and tail docking – which cause pain to lambs and are often carried out without pain relief.
The egg industry body has raised concerns that the government has not committed to equivalent bans on imported eggs, meaning UK farming is “exposed to unfair competition from imports and risks moving food production overseas”.
“We urge the government, if it wishes to ban enriched cages, to make a clear and unequivocal commitment to fair trade and support UK farmers,” said BEIC CEO Nick Allen. “Products that would be illegal to produce in the UK must be illegal to import and sell here.”
He also warned that, with this regulation, sections of society may be forced to pay more for eggs or remove them from shopping baskets altogether.
Read more: Caged eggs to be phased out by 2032, government says
Allen’s concerns were echoed by NFU president Tom Bradshaw, who said the UK could risk offshoring production to “jurisdictions we have no control over, and expose the resilience of our domestic food systems”.
Ukranian eggs have become more common in the UK following the government’s introdcution of tariff-free imports in a support deal ending in March 2026.
In the Animal Welfare Strategy, the government said it would “consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and be prepared to use the full range of powers at our disposal to protect our most sensitive sectors”.
The British Free Range Egg Producers Association’s (BFREPA) head of strategy and producer engagement Gary Ford said the timeline was “extremely tight”.
He said the government would have to work with industry to create the right conditions to expand cage-free production, while maintaining “both sustainable and profitable egg production as well as the current levels of self-sufficiency in the sector”.
NFU poultry board chair Will Raw also added that “method of production on its own is not necessarily an indication of welfare”.
He said: “Colony cage eggs positively contribute to wider food security and environmental goals, which sadly do not appear to have been acknowledged sufficiently by the government.
Raw also warned that there were “significant barriers” that need to be unlocked by the government including a planning system to encourage growh.
Read more
-
Animal welfare reforms welcomed but farmers raise concerns
-
Animal welfare strategy: government releases more details
While the industry has expressed concern, animal rights groups have welcomed the proposals.
The RSPCA, which has campaigned against cage systems for half a century, said the consultation was a “crucial opportunity to push towards a cage-free future”.
“Every year across the UK, millions of farmed animals are kept in cages, unable to express their natural behaviours and experiencing an unimaginable amount of suffering,” said RSCPA’s head of public affairs David Bowles. “73% of the British public oppose the use of cages for hens, and we have always been clear: cages cannot be part of British farming any longer.”
The organisation called on the public to “make their voices heard” throughout the course of the eight-week consultations.
Humane League MD Sean Gifford said: “This consultation launch is great news, and kudos to the government for moving so quickly. But we urge them to remember that warm words won’t free hens. Hens are suffering in cramped cages in their millions, and every single one of them needs to be freed as soon as possible.
“The government can be reassured this compassionate act would have the full support of the general public.”
No comments yet