I would like to use this excellent @rowanjacobsen piece in @newfoodeconomy as an excuse to talk about CHICKEN WELFARE in the EGG business. Because every time I mention it, the same thing happens. So I need a THREAD. newfoodeconomy.org/death-of-the-i…
I say something like let’s not keep chickens in TINY cages where they can barely MOVE. They can’t run, flap, dust bathe, or scratch around. Chickens, left to their own devices, do those things. In those TINY cages, they can’t. Can they be HAPPY?
INVARIABLY, somebody says Tamar! Look at the SCIENCE! And they reference one of several studies that show that there are more injuries and cannibalism in cage-free environments than in TINY CAGES. Like this one. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21177469
Over and over, I have had supporters of conventional ag tell me, sincerely, that CAGES are more HUMANE. These are often thoughtful, reasonable people whom I respect, and it boggles my mind that this position gets traction.
I also get the standard-issue accusation of anthropomorphism. And this annoys me for two reasons. REASON 1: It’s like there’s a script. Somebody says HAPPINESS and you have to say ANTHROPOMORPHISM. But also …
REASON 2: I’ve tried to figure out chicken happiness by spending time with actual CHICKENS. I’ve kept hens for 10 years and I’ve tried to understand them because you know what? Science SUCKS at measuring happiness.
The cage-free debate suffers from an overreliance on studies that measure what can be measured (injuries, cannibalism) but ignore what can’t be (well-being). Can we PLEASE step away from the studies, just for a moment?
Here’s the basic question: Do you think it’s OK to keep animals in cages so small they can barely move? I emphatically do not. Here is my in-depth exploration of chicken happiness washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food…
Let’s say we were having this debate in the other direction. The industry was all cage-free, and had too many injuries, too much mortality. Their answer? Let’s IMMOBILIZE them in TINY CAGES! That way, they won’t get hurt or attacked.
And if you think the cages aren’t that tiny, or that the animals aren’t basically immobilized, google ‘battery cages’ and look at the pictures. Not even the terrible ones from activist groups, just look at the normal ones, like this. 
My understanding, both from (admittedly backyard) experience and from talking with poultry scientists, is that an excellent way to reduce injury attacks in chickens is to give them SPACE. (And by all means let's talk PRICE, too, but today it's WELFARE.)
For sure, you can have a cage-free barn that is TERRIBLE.But a cage-free barn can also be EXCELLENT. There are also some systems where small groups are in larger cages, and that might work too. What is never excellent is the cages that are now standard.
My main point (and I do have one) is that the contention that CAGES are more HUMANE because SCIENCE is nothing short of GASLIGHTING. THE END.
