Aibu to be angry with people who do not buy free range eggs?

[ohnoudidnt]

I know that they cost more, but surely it is worth the extra to know the bird has had a better standard of living.

I'm sorry that I haven't read all 26 pages, so this might have been mentioned before. The supermarkets will only buy eggs from hens that are up to a year old. So when the happy free range hens are a year old they are culled. Nothing in life is perfect.
The cheap way to buy free range is to take a drive out into the countryside and get them direct from the person with the hens. I buy mine from the lady who supplies many of the large supermarkets, at just over half the price I'd pay for her eggs in Sainsbury's.

Any chicken farmed for its eggs will be culled (or rescued for a lucky few) when it reaches a year old, as this is when it moults, stops laying for a couple of weeks, and when it starts laying again has funny shells (no shells, soft shells, funny shaped etc) for a while. It wouldn't be financially viable to keep them any longer than this, and when it comes down to it, the farmers are in business, usually doing what the supermarket dictates they do.
The only way to guarantee happy hens is to find a backyard keeper. NO farmed hens, whether battery, barn, free range or organic, are happy hens, no matter what anyone tells you. A very few farmers adjust the barns to ensure happy lives and access to the outside world, the vast majority do the bare minimum, to keep costs as low as possible, since the supermarkets screw every last penny out of all their suppliers, even where live animals are involved.

True point about the culling Lucy. But at least they have had some sort of life. Great idea about bypassing the supermarkets!

i dont get angry but i do feel disapointed that people dont think or care about the conditons of the eggs and animals they eat.

If i couldnt afford to buy free rage or organic eggs i wouldnt buy any at all, a matter of a couple of pounds for meat or pence for eggs is nothing comapred to the quality of life the animal endured

just read some other posts about them being culled once they reach a year old. are there organisations that rescue them? is it possible to adopt these hens?

There are rescue places - if you want to talk to other very knowledgeable people, go onto the Omlet site. It's a friendly and kind place with lots of information. If the info isn't there, just ask. It is sad about the culling but egg birds have a longer life than meat birds - who only live for a matter of weeks. Two of my girls are three years old and still lay. Even if they didn't, I would keep them as pets. Nothing better than a cuddle from a chicken.

I have heard that ex-batts are fantastically rewarding...

thank you punk, im off to omlet :)

Yes knittedbreast, Battery Hen Welfare Trust have regular rescues, there are more that tend to operate in smaller areas.

Please don't be fooled that buying freerange automatically means higher welfare. It really doesn't.
I know no-one has any reason to believe me on this, but I have seen all sorts of chicken farms, and actually battery hens often have better lives than the freerange hens. (I have posted on here before under my normal name - faverolles)

I know I should just hide this thread, as I find it so frustrating that so many people believe the tripe that is trotted out about FR eggs, but I can't seem to shut up on this subject!

Anyone with a garden can rescue ex farmed hens, and even a tiny garden can offer undreamed of freedom to ex-batts, or indeed ex FR hens. They are very friendly and easy to keep. Unfortunately they often don't live long, but even a few months of a happy life would be wonderful for them, so please consider it :)

Free range eggs dont cost more ,you can buy a dozen for £1.50 where i live .

Apologies if this has been said before, I haven't read all 26 pages...

But I presume that the OP buys only free range meat as well as free range eggs, and doesn't buy any products made with non free range eggs or meat eg pasta, mayonnaise, cakes etc.

I buy free range eggs from a man up the road, and buy most of my meat from a farm shop which sells free range. However I will admit to eating ready made foods eg sandwiches, cakes etc which don't necessarily contain free range products. I try to limit it, eg I won't order chicken when eating out if I don't know that it is free range, but it is hard to entirely avoid things made with non FR eggs. Not impossible mind you, vegans must manage to avoid eggs!

So, unless you are living a whiter than white non-FR product avoiding existance YABU.

YADNBU.

People who buy battery eggs should be ashamed of themselves. How would they like to be put in a tiny wire prison with no room to move and no natural daylight? It?s just pure ignorance.

Organic eggs are more animal friendly than free range, however.

Idratherbe - the organic farms that have been showcased on Jamie Oliver and Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall programs look amazing, but those belong to farmers who have gone above and beyond the requirements to be able to label the eggs organic.
The chickens are fed an organic diet, and as such their eggs are more nutritious, but unless they are kept in barns with very large open doors, you still get the problem of some chickens having a access to the great outdoors, and the majority unable to get out because of dominant hens guarding the pop holes.

Most free range chickens are treated appallingly. My DB rescued some and apparantly they have their beaks chopped off so they can't peck each other

That's just as bad aas barn hens imo.

hope you don't buy anything at all premade containing eggs, or you're a total hypocrite.

I can't really understand why people get so het up about chickens being kept in cages unless they are vegetarians. You are happy to kill and animal but not happy to keep one in poor conditions? Double standards. All this 'I care about animal welfare'- not if you kill animals you don't!

I buy free range, I can afford free range, but anyone who eats eggs is contributing the the death of male chicks so cannot be too high up on their horse.

i dont think buying jars made with eggs makes you a hyporcrite. you cant always guarantee that all ingredients will be organic or free range even if they say they are. that dousnt mean that where you can buy free range etc you should.

techinally i suppose i could make all the sauces like mayo etc myself but that isnt likely to happen. but if and when im buying meat or eggs il 100% make sure are not battery farmed to the best of my ability, even if all it changes is the level of sales based on free range so that shops and supermarkets might take note and buy less battery farmed animals

It does if you are banging on about how people should be ashamed of themselves for buying battery eggs.

You can't get a medal for buying organic free range whole eggs and then buying loads of products full of battery eggs!

Which eggs are best to throw? I'm looking for close-range eggs?..

We should all be vegan, really, but it is such hard work ....

We are getting three chickens soon - hopefully this weekend. I love eggs.

I don't think it's a double standard to care about animal welfare if you eat meat though. Plus the fact it makes them taste nicer if they aren't fed crap and get to run round.

Everyone is a hypocrite to some extent but just because it is impossible to be perfectly ethical in all your food choices it doesn't mean you shouldn't try at all.

YANBU, can't currently afford them so we are going without. Won't kill us!