Britain’s last battery hen ‘Liberty’ is re-homed as practice is banned

December 30th, 2011

FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda

By
Charles Walford

Last updated at 5:02 PM on 29th December 2011

Britain’s ‘last battery hen’ was given a new home today signalling the end of an era for commercial laying hens, a charity said.

The hen, which has been named Liberty, will enjoy her retirement at a farm in Chulmleigh, Devon, where she will join around 60 other ex-battery hens.

Liberty will be living at the British Hen Welfare Trust’s base with its founder, Jane Howorth.

The Trust, which was set up in 2005,
has helped re-home thousands of hens who would otherwise be destined for
the slaughterhouse.

Under EU rules, from January 1 egg
producers will have to provide hens with larger cages enabling them to
spread their wings and move around.

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Liberty the hen has been re-homed by Jane Howorth of the British Hen Welfare Trust

This means less space for chickens that farmers see as past their prime – int urn meaning a trip to the abattoir.

Ms Howorth said: ‘Today is a major milestone in the life of the commercial laying hen in Britain and I’m pleased that improved welfare changes are being implemented.

‘It’s an emotional day for us at the British Hen Welfare Trust, as one chapter closes and a new one begins.

‘As Liberty enjoys her new-found
freedom, she is blissfully unaware of the milestone in the history of
hens that she represents and the fact that she is the very reason I set
up this charity.’

Liberty will be last ex-battery hen to be rehomed in Chulmleigh, England, ahead of the EU directive outlawing battery farming

The trust launched an appeal to the public in November to help re-home as many of the last batch of battery hens as possible, hoping it could find new homes for about 6,000 hens.

The response was so high that it has re-homed nearer 15,000 – almost 6,000 of which were re-homed in three days between Christmas and the new year, the charity said.

But, Ms Howorth added there are still a number of challenges ahead of them.

‘These things are never simple, and whilst Britain is complying with the new legislation, many overseas countries are not, and we will continue to see battery eggs imported into the UK, many of which will end up in processed food,’ she said.

‘This will provide a challenge for British farmers who will struggle to compete with lower welfare, cheaper egg imports from abroad.

‘So we urge consumers to continue supporting our British farmers and always insist on British – and wherever possible – free range eggs.’

British egg farmers have invested an estimated £400million to comply with the new regulations, but the charity said up to a third of other EU member states will not be ready.

The trust added that under the new regulations cages can hold up to 90 birds, but they must have space to spread their wings, perch and be able to go from one end of the cage to the other, with 750 square centimetres of space for each bird.

The old-style cages had just 550 square centimetres of space – less than a sheet of A4 paper.

The British Hen Welfare Trust, which started out as a one woman with a van operation, said that at the last count it will have re-homed over 300,000 ex-battery hens by the end of 2011.

Ms Howorth said: ‘The response from the public has been truly phenomenal and I cannot thank them, our supporters and our dedicated volunteers – 140 of whom have been working flat out over the Christmas period – enough.

‘The compassion and support demonstrated by the British public shows that welfare is truly alive and kicking in this country and I am so proud of what we have achieved, and will continue to achieve, together.’

Here’s what other readers have said. Why not add your thoughts,
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Ridiculous that it took this long to stop farmers keeping these poor animals in appalling conditions. Guess credit should go to the EU (for a change) when its due.

– Scott, UK, 30/12/2011 00:49

I am so glad that I do not eat meat, I love animals/birds, I wish people were kind enough to give up…Poor poor chickens are suffering the most!

– AM, London UK, 30/12/2011 00:17

A fantastic start. Now to ban caged eggs completely!

– Laura, Milton Keynes , 29/12/2011 23:48

Once again the Government has danced to the tune of the EU and imposed massive costs on farmers, how many EU countries are not compliant and therefore have an immediate cost advantage. Our “Leaders and “Civil Service” have a lot to answer for!!

– LBJ, Belfast, N Ireland, 29/12/2011 23:31

well done and thank you.

– suzi, abroad, 29/12/2011 23:27

Good to hear. Now let’s stop more animal abuse by having CCTV installed at abbatoirs and ban halal slaughter in this country

– Chocdrops, England, 29/12/2011 23:06

That’s fantastic – now let’s ban the import of battery eggs, and of meat that isn’t produced to the same standards that our own farmers have to abide by. It’s ridiculous that their costs can be undercut by imports from foreign producers who wouldn’t be allowed to operate in the UK at all.

– Jane ROBERTS, Oxford, 29/12/2011 22:59

Compare this to the disgusting treatment of Butterball turkeys. All factory farming should be abolished. Not only does it result in terrible living conditions for the animals involved, they also need to be pumped full of chemicals and drugs which are still in the meat when we buy it . I suspect that obesity has increased because of the growth hormone we have consumed in this meat as well as because we are eating far more meat than we really need.

– sandy, outer space – thank God!, 29/12/2011 21:27

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