The impact of laying hen welfare on the competitiveness of the EU egg industry

The European Union has introduced animal welfare legislation to protect the welfare of laying hens. This will prohibit the use of conventional cages from 2012, but authorises the use of enriched cages. This will increase the production cost of eggs. Meanwhile a new round of World Trade Organisation (WTO) negotiations are set to further liberalise trade in agricultural products. What effect will all this have on the EU egg industry? This article can also be found at World Poultry Volume 19 n