HUMANE EGGS FOR BREAKFAST?: Filipinos demand cage-free eggs from silent brands

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

An overwhelming majority of Filipino consumers are demanding food companies switch to cage-free eggs and are willing to pay more for them, even as major brands remain silent on their animal welfare commitments in the country.

A recent survey has cast a harsh light on a growing disconnect between consumer expectations and corporate practices in the Philippine food industry.

The data reveals a market ripe for ethically sourced products, yet advocates say many multinational corporations are failing to provide the transparency that Filipino consumers deserve.

STRONG CALL FOR CAGE-FREE

A staggering 95% of Filipinos believe hens that produce eggs should not be confined to cages and should be free to walk and move around, according to a February 2024 survey conducted by Tokyo-based GMO Research for the Lever Foundation.

This sentiment is echoed in consumer expectations for businesses, with 99% of respondents agreeing that restaurants, supermarkets, and packaged food companies should source eggs and meat from a supply chain that follows humane standards for animal treatment.

The survey, which sampled 211 Filipino men and women, found that 83% of consumers specifically want eggs sourced by these businesses to come from hens living in cage-free environments.

This preference directly influences purchasing decisions, as 80% of consumers reported they are more inclined to patronize a food brand that exclusively uses cage-free eggs.

The findings suggest that cage-free eggs are not a niche or novel concept in the Philippines.

A significant portion of consumers are already familiar with them, with only a quarter of those surveyed stating they had no prior knowledge of the practice.

Furthermore, a majority have already purchased them, with 37% often choosing cage-free options and 35% doing so occasionally.

WILLING TO PAY

This strong preference is backed by a willingness to open their wallets.

The survey found that 89% of Filipino consumers believe the food safety and quality advantages of cage-free eggs are worth a higher price.

For supermarket purchases, 76% of shoppers are willing to accept a price increase of 10-25% for cage-free eggs over conventional caged eggs.

When dining out or buying packaged foods, 74% of consumers would tolerate a 5-10% price hike for dishes or products made with cage-free eggs.

These price tolerances are well within the actual cost increases that businesses face when shifting to cage-free sourcing.

The report notes that for restaurants and packaged food brands, using a cage-free egg typically increases the total production cost of a meal or product by less than 1%.

In supermarkets, the wholesale price gap between caged and low-cost cage-free eggs in many Asian markets is at or below 25%, a difference that is expected to shrink as cage-free production scales up.

When asked to choose the most important advantage of cage-free eggs, consumers were nearly evenly split between ethical and practical benefits.

Animal welfare was the top reason for 33% of respondents, closely followed by the improved safety of the eggs at 31%.

Higher quality was valued most by 25% of consumers, while the sustainability of production was the primary concern for 12%.

PUBLIC HEALTH RISKS

The concern over food safety is backed by significant public health data.

Eggs from battery cage systems have been repeatedly linked to contamination, with global studies showing that caged egg farms carry up to 33 times higher risk of salmonella infection compared to cage-free systems.

The issue is especially pressing in the Philippines, where public health experts are raising alarms over multidrug-resistant salmonella.

A recent study by the University of the Philippines Diliman – Institute of Biology identified these drug-resistant pathogens in chicken sold in local markets, highlighting the growing risk of foodborne illnesses that are increasingly difficult to treat.

In 2024, the Department of Science and Technology underscored the problem by reporting a 42% increase in salmonella cases, pointing to poor handling and contaminated production environments—including those for eggs and poultry—as contributing factors.

WATCHDOG

Despite this clear consumer mandate, a significant gap in corporate accountability remains.

In response, a new watchdog group, the Pinas Initiative for Accountability (PIA), launched in July to hold companies to their promises.

“Filipino consumers are being left behind in a time when they deserve transparency,” said Nancy Samonte, program manager for PIA. “It’s not enough to make promises abroad and hide behind silence locally”.

Samonte argues that consumers are being deceived if global brands market themselves as ethical while failing to apply those same standards in the Philippines.

“Our consumers already buy into global brands that market themselves as ethical and sustainable,” she said. “If those same brands are charging premium prices locally while cutting corners on animal welfare they follow elsewhere, then we are being lied to”.

Currently, no legislation in the Philippines compels companies to publicize their progress—or lack thereof—on cage-free commitments.

To address this, PIA is set to release a 2025 Cage-free Tracker in October.

This tracker will map the commitments of all Philippine-based companies, aiming to shed light on their progress toward transitioning away from caged eggs.

“The goal is simple: empower consumers and pressure companies to stop treating ethical sourcing as optional in the Philippine market,” Samonte stated. “We want Filipinos to see which companies are true to their word, and which ones are not”.

HUMANE STANDARD

Cage-free systems are recognized globally as a more humane method of housing egg-laying hens.

Unlike conventional battery cages, which are often so small that hens cannot even spread their wings, cage-free environments allow birds to express natural behaviors such as perching, nesting, and dust bathing.

These activities are crucial for their physical and psychological well-being and significantly reduce the pain and distress they endure in cramped cages.

Local egg producers in the Philippines have already started to meet this demand by producing and supplying cage-free eggs.

Some major Philippine-headquartered companies have also made public commitments.

Jollibee, for instance, has pledged to transition to 100% cage-free eggs in the United States by 2025 and to achieve this goal globally by 2035.

However, many other multinational food companies operating in the country have been less forthcoming.

Despite making high-profile global pledges, many remain vague or silent about their transition timelines specifically for the Philippine market.

With deadlines for 2025 commitments looming for many of these brands, there remains no clear update on how far they have come.

PIA is now in active dialogue with these major brands, pushing them to publish local transition plans that align with their global standards.

The group is also engaging with government agencies to integrate cage-free efforts into broader Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and food sustainability frameworks.

“We call on local authorities to take action to protect our Filipino consumers,” Samonte urged.