State agriculture ministers met on 13 July, to discuss the future of the country’s egg industry. The ministers endorsed an updated version of the Australian Animal Welfare Standards and Guidelines for Poultry, which provides new guidelines, including a phase-out of conventional layer hen cages by 2036, ten years earlier than the previously stated phase-out date of 2046.

A number of animal welfare advocates had said the 13-year phase-out was too slow. The decision about timeframe has been left to the state and territory governments to decide and finalise. 

Senator Murray Watt, the Federal Agriculture Minister said "for the first time, after several years of work, we've been able to reach a national agreement about new animal welfare standards."

Senator Watt believes the earlier phase-out is good for both poultry farmers and consumers, because the market is already shifting, and many retailers and large manufacturing companies using eggs are already moving towards more humane methods of raising hens, while working towards achieving the quality and volume of eggs required.  

Taking a different view, the Leader of The Nationals and Shadow Agriculture Minister David Littleproud is calling on state governments to protect egg farmers, amid fears of rising egg prices. This already happened in New Zealand with the price of eggs rising by 50 percent, due to egg supply shortages. 

Mr Littleproud said the New South Wales Labor Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty and Queensland’s Labor Agricultural Industry Development Minister Mark Furner needed to step up for farmers in their states (most egg production is in New South Wales and Queensland). 

“The State Labor ministers need to have the courage and conviction to support egg producers and continue with the status quo” Mr Littleproud said. And further that “Farmers have made investment decisions worth millions of dollars, predicated on the current guidelines, believing they had until 2046.”

“Our egg farmers deserve support, not surprises, from state governments,” he said. 

Mr Littleproud doesn’t believe the science in relation to caged eggs is conclusive. “We don’t need to rush this process,” he stated. “Any changes would effectively be a retrospective decision and farmers will have to bear the cost, which is unfair and un-Australian. The unintended consequences will also mean higher egg prices for consumers. 

“We can use common sense and have more consultation to ensure investment confidence for farmers, while also continuing to provide fresh and healthy produce to consumers.”