Walmart, the nation's largest grocery chain, is scrambling to join the "cage-free" eggs movement, which will mean hens get more space to move around and their eggs should become cheaper.
The retailer's announcement Tuesday that it will sell only cage-free eggs by 2025 is being lauded as the final act solidifying the food industry's transition to more humane egg production. Walmart follows dozens of other retailers, restaurants and food manufacturers to commit to cage-free eggs over the next several years. McDonald's, Kroger, Costco and Trader Joe's are among those also in transition.
As more cage-free eggs come to market, the often-pricier option could become more affordable.
"We expect that as cage-free eggs shift from a specialty product to the industry standard over the next decade, that change will be reflected for our customers in pricing," says Kevin Gardner, a Walmart spokesman.
Cage-free eggs have long been a more expensive choice compared with conventional eggs from hens raised in cages. The most recent figures put the price for a dozen white cage-free eggs at $2.99, with the price of a dozen large white eggs at $1.29, according to the Department of Agriculture.
Studies show only a slight difference in the cost to produce cage-free eggs, but no difference between cage-free and conventionally produced eggs themselves, says Josh Balk, senior food policy director for The Humane Society of the United States.
"The cost is going to come down," Balk says. "These production practices are going to gain in efficiency because producers are going to understand even better how to do it."
The difference is in the living conditions of the hens laying the eggs.
"Currently, the majority of hens are confined to battery cages, where birds are crowded together so tightly that they don’t even have room to flap their wings," says Nancy Roulston, director of corporate engagement for farm animal welfare at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. "Each bird has less space than an iPad to live on," Balk says. Both The Humane Society and ASPCA worked with Walmart to develop its new policy.
United Egg Producers, a trade association that sets guidelines for egg production, says caged systems help eliminate diseases and protect animals from weather and predators. "UEP supports all methods of hen housing for egg production, when they assure proper hen well-being and meet or exceed all food safety requirements," said President and CEO Chad Gregory in a statement Tuesday, at the same time pledging support for Walmart and other retailers transitioning to cage-free eggs. Just 6% of eggs currently come from cage-free hens.
"At this point, it’s a niche within a grocery store," Balk says of cage-free eggs. "Producers know they can charge more because people who buy them often care about issues of social responsibility, therefore they’re willing to put more money into buying those eggs. It’s an inflated cost."
Cost doesn't seem to be deterring shoppers from picking up a carton. Cage-free eggs have grown in popularity. Unit sales of a dozen white eggs with a cage-free claim for the 52 weeks ended Feb. 20 were up 20.4% compared to a year ago, while non cage-free egg unit sales fell 3.8%, according to Nielsen figures.
Walmart has sold cage-free eggs since 2001, though Gardner declined to break out what share cage-free eggs comprise of the company's egg sales. Kroger and Albertsons, two of the largest grocers, which both announced earlier this year that stores would switch to 100% cage-free eggs, did not respond to requests for comment about price differences or share of cage-free egg sales. In a press release announcing its cage-free commitment, Kroger said 15% of the eggs it sold last year were cage-free.
Walmart is sticking with its same egg suppliers as it makes the switch over the next nine years. The suppliers will be required to abide by certain standards, including providing hens "enrichment" such as nests and perches, giving each hen a minimum of one square foot of space and submitting to third-party auditing.
Follow Hadley Malcolm on Twitter @hadleypdxdc.
