WorldPoultry: Enriched colony barn eggs enter US market

The US’s first enriched colony barn eggs have gone on sale in California. Eggs produced by JS West and Companies, certified as humane by American Humane Association's American Humane Certified farm animal welfare program, and marketed under the label, "Comfort Coop," are now in the aisles of major supermarkets and grocery stores throughout California.

Enriched colony housing not only provides room for hens to stand up, turn around, and extend their wings, but it also meets the natural behavior need of hens to nest, perch and scratch. For consumers, enriched colony eggs provide a safe and affordable choice that meets the ethical considerations for good animal welfare.

Enriched Colony Barns were first endorsed in 2010 as a humane production system (in addition to free-range and cage-free) by American Humane Association, based on existing research and AHA's more than 200 science-based animal welfare standards. Enriched Colony Housing was proposed to Congress this year, and was sponsored in the Senate by Diane Feinstein of CA, as the mandated minimum standard for egg production in the United States.

The first enriched colony barn was built in California by JS West and Companies in 2010. American Humane Association certified the farm and provided the Seal of Approval for the equipment and installation in the barn.
"The hens come first," said Jill Benson at JS West and Companies. "We are passionate about the quality of the eggs we put on the table, as well as the health and welfare of our hens. The American Humane Certified program provides verifiable assurance that we have met rigorous, science-based animal welfare standards, and that the animals in the program were humanely raised throughout their lives."

"Consumers are increasingly concerned with making food purchases that are in line with their values," said Kathi Brock, National Director of American Humane Association's Humane Heartland program, which includes the American Humane Certified farm animal welfare program, the first, largest and fastest-growing humane certification effort in the United States. "Because of enlightened producers like JS West and products like Comfort Coop Eggs, we can all make humane choices every time we shop. This is a chance for everyone who cares about doing good in the world to be a good egg….just by buying a good egg."