LONDON - 10 January 2008 - 190 words
Christians
urged to buy free-range chickens and end battery farming
A European Commission refusal to delay a ban on battery cages
has been welcomed by the Christian Peoples Alliance party, which
is urging Christians to begin changing their buying habits by
choosing free range poultry. A Commission report says the ban
on keeping laying hens in tiny cages should come into effect in
2012 as planned, despite calls from farmers for more time to prepare.
Spokeswoman for the CPA, Sue May said: "If anything, 2012
is still a long time to wait for an end to the appalling cruelty
of battery farming. Any delay would have been an outrage to human
decency. Now the facts are getting known, it would be great if
Christians everywhere took a lead in buying more ethically and
choosing free-range chickens and eggs. Collectively, we could
make a huge difference. The Bible is emphatically on the side
of animal welfare and the requirement to show respect towards
all of God's creation."
According to official figures, 62% of the UK's 29 million laying
hens are kept in battery cages, while 34% are free range and 4%
are kept in barn systems. Across 27 EU countries, an estimated
200 million hens are kept in cages which confine them to a space
barely big enough to turn around.
They cannot spread their wings, peck, scratch or perch.
Sue May added: "Channel Four's Jamie Oliver and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
are doing a public service in highlighting the appalling conditions
in which chickens are intensively raised. Consumers cannot say
they didn't know. " Marks & Spencer and Waitrose have
already stopped selling eggs from
caged hens, and Sainsbury's, Morrisons and the Co-op have announced
plans to phase out the sale of battery eggs."
Source: CPA
© Independent Catholic
News 2008
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