Contribution
I could not agree more, and I thank the right hon. Gentleman for reminding me to declare my interest as a member of the Labour Animal Welfare Society.
In Scotland, 84% of people have said that they think that farrowing crates should be banned immediately or in the next five years. Additionally, more than half of Scots said that they were willing to pay more for pork that was not produced using farrowing crates. That is something to bear in mind. Although the previous Government stated in 2019 that farrowing crates should be banned, consultation never took place on phasing them out. This debate is an opportunity to get that discussion, and hopefully consultation, under way.
It is a positive step that there is consensus from various organisations that farrowing crates should be banned, even if differing timelines are suggested. The British Veterinary Association is in favour of banning farrowing crates. It found that 75% of vets are concerned about the impact of farrowing crates on the welfare of pigs, with 36% of those vets saying that they were very concerned. The BVA is now calling for a gradual phasing out of the crates over 15 years and a transition to a system that favours the health of both the sow and the piglets. It recommended that Government producers and retailers should implement an awareness campaign for consumers and share best practice, thus demonstrating that there must be scope to ensure better and more accurate labelling of products. I will say more about that later.
In preparing for this debate, meetings were held with the National Pig Association, the National Farmers Union, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Compassion in World Farming and the petitioner, Dame Joanna Lumley. Although I am pleased that the National Pig Association agrees that we need to transition to flexible farrowing systems, it wishes to do so over 20 years. It is good to see that there is agreement on the phasing out of this practice. The RSPCA’s pig experts found that a transition should take no longer than 10 years, and furthermore, Dr Alice Brough, a former pig industry vet, said
“We banned gestation crates in 1999; we have had 26 years to prepare for this obvious follow-on.”
With that consensus, surely there must be scope to agree a shorter and speedier timeline.
I also met with the NFU to discuss its views on enriched cages for laying hens, which, disappointingly, it still supports. It is hugely positive that the vast majority of hens are not kept in cages, but we cannot forget the 23% of eggs that are still laid by hens in cages. We know that the transition is doable and practical, and we must get a timeline in place to see an end to this practice.
In 2022, polling found that 94% of the public oppose the use of enriched cages for hens. These cages replaced battery cages, which were banned when the UK adopted the relevant EU Council directive in 2012. However, enriched colony cages have only 9% more usable space per bird than the previous battery cages, and they are hardly bigger than an A4 piece of paper. Every year in the UK, a shocking 8 million layer hens spend their lives in cages. As with pigs, many of their natural behaviours are restricted by these cages. The hens cannot flap their wings, perch or dust bathe, and that can cause frustration, bone weakness and osteoporosis. How enriched are these cages if confinement is so extreme?
It is important to note another key issue related to chicken farming: hatch and dispatch. In the UK, 86 male chicks are killed every minute; that is 45 million baby chicks a year. However, this cruel practice is today unnecessary, as countries such as France and Germany have already mandated the use of in-ovo sexing technology, which determines the sex of a chick before they can feel pain. Within in-ovo sexing, eggs can be discarded before they have to hatch. It is estimated that implementing such technology would add less than one penny to the cost of each egg. Surely, the UK must adopt that system without delay.