On July 31, WATT Global noted that many restaurants are not seeing their customers ask for cage free eggs. Why then are many in the egg industry pushing for cage-free? Here’s what was reported.
National chains say customer demand for better animal welfare practices have led to changes, but mom and pop restaurants aren’t saying that. Typically, these restaurant chains have made announcements of the pledges, and those announcements typically tend to say they are because of consumer demand. Justifiably so, there has been some skepticism about this and it has more to do with activist pressure and a matter of not wanting to be painted in an unfavorable light. The fact that cage-free eggs aren’t selling as quickly in grocery stores as lower-priced cage-produced eggs alone gives credibility to the skeptics. If customers are truly concerned about cage-free eggs and other activist-supported food trends, they will let that be known as well.
And wouldn’t you know it, I haven’t seen a single report of how an establishment like “Marvin’s BBQ Hut in Beatrice, Nebraska,” has pledged to only serve chicken from slower-growing broilers. Maybe that’s because Marvin is off the radar of animal rights extremists and he truly knows the wishes of his customers.