Page 346 - Week 01 - Thursday, 14 February 1991
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(1) When the egg industry was regulated in NSW a system existed to certify free range egg farms and to supply them with special cartons and wrappings so that their eggs could be identified as "legitimate free range eggs".
Since deregulation the system has broken down and the certification scheme no longer exists.
However a set of guidelines has been produced for the guidance of growers, retailers and consumers which has been officially endorsed by the NSW Departments of Agriculture and Fisheries, Business and Consumer Affairs, and Health. The NSW Department of Health has signified its willingness to use the guidelines as a basis for prosecuting organisations selling free range eggs which breach its provision.
These guidelines set criteria fox such things as housing, feeding and provision of foraging space for the hens. The stocking rate should not exceed 600 birds per acre. No mention is made concerning debeakting or vaccinating the birds. However, commercial egg producers are likely to purchase their birds from large scale hatcheries who all vaccinate their chicks.
NSW producers have recently formed a "Free Range Egg Producers Association" which has developed detailed plans for a more stringent self-regulatory system for certifying free range egg producers. These plans will include inspection of properties and the issue of egg cartons based on the numbers of free range hens owned so as to prevent the substitution of battery hen eggs for free range ones.
2. There are no large producers of free range eggs in the ACT. There is only one registered commercial operation in the ACT and this produces battery hen eggs. "Free range eggs" sold in the ACT are either imported from interstate or are supplied by small unregistered producers.
3. Mr Pace and Mr Moncrief are both egg producers in NSW. Their organisations gained certification as free range egg producers under the old system and their present operations may or may not comply with the new NSW guidelines.
4. Under the present NSW system there is no provision for Animal Liberation to endorse or reject producers supplying "free range eggs".
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