by Sue Kedgley
Well, you have to hand it to them!
McDonalds is the first fast food retailer – in fact the first large commercial business in New Zealand – to commit to using free range eggs in 19 of its restaurants in New Zealand.
You just know its all part of McDonald’s re-branding exercise, a cunning plan to try to shed their nasty ‘junk food’ image and reposition themselves as a more serious, credible, caring food outlet.
But hey, they are the first fast food company to do it. So whatever their motivation, congratulations! It will have the effect of sparing about 7 thousand (out of 3 million) hens from living their short and tragic lives inside a cage. And if other fast food companies join in, it could have the effect of phasing out demand for cruel, battery raised eggs altogether.
I know SAFE has been trying for years to persuade restaurants and food businesses to convert to using free range eggs, but most businesses have resisted their call, putting profitability ahead of principle.
So it’s great that McDonalds has decided to take the plunge, and hopefully others will follow. We certainly hope McDonalds will extend its decision to other stores outside of Christchurch and Dunedin. And we hope it will give a big boost to free range egg production, as well.
Speaking of free range egg production, its time we had some statutory guidelines about what actually constitutes a ‘free range’ egg. I have been told there are some companies which use the free range label, but you and I wouldn’t consider their farms to be free range at all.
So to protect consumers and ensure the word free range isn’t being abused, its time the Commerce Commission or the Ministry of Consumer Affairs took the lead and developed clear guidelines for the industry, and for what practices may, or may not, be deemed to be free range.
Published in Environment & Resource Management | Health & Wellbeing by Sue Kedgley on Tue, December 1st, 2009
Tags: free range, McDonalds, SAFE
More posts by Sue Kedgley | more about Sue Kedgley
on the trolls and those who are unable to keep on topic
yah. Provide your reasons please. One would think...
oh..!..a great victory for incrementalism/the incrementalists…..eh..?
’19′..you say..?
and..how many years has it been..?
phil(whoar.co.nz)
Like or Dislike:
1 
3 (-2)
nine plus year of ‘welfare-ism’ haven’t delivered a lot..
(from either you..or safe..)
..for the animals..
..have they..?
..sue..?
(are you still on/doing your pork-marketing gig/tour..?..)
phil(whoar.co.nz0
Like or Dislike:
0 
4 (-4)
hey, waitta minute.. are you sure there aint no better productivity deals going down over this.. hens laying faster.. more conveniently.. more period.
Mac.. those arch-ed guys have always been conditionals..
Like or Dislike:
0 
0 (0)
Tomfarmer – ‘more period’ – that’s funny!
Like or Dislike:
0 
0 (0)
What a great PR stunt for McDonalds! And a nice collateral effect for a number of chickens.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0 (0)
greenfly,
mebbe a comma knocks out the oxymoron.. best
okay smartie
Like or Dislike:
0 
0 (0)
McDonalds & Inghams must have an advertising joint venture as the Inghams brand name appears at the beginning of the McDonald’s ad, which has been showing on TV for the last week or so!
As many reading this thread are probably aware, Inghams have been feeding their chickens Genetically Modified feed. More info here:
http://tvnz.co.nz/business-news/inghams-gets-ticking-off-over-no-gm-claims-3155754
I say BOYCOTT MCDONALDS & INGHAMS!
Like or Dislike:
0 
0 (0)
One can correctly assume that Inghams are supplying all of or some of McDonalds chicken requirements!
Like or Dislike:
0 
0 (0)
Oops apologies to McDonalds!
Got the service providers mixed up.
Please supplant the name McDonalds in my last 2 posts with “KFC”!
Like or Dislike:
0 
0 (0)
Well, Mcdonalds wanna shed their ‘junk food’ image?Well other similar ‘junk food’restaurants might have something to say about that
Like or Dislike:
0 
0 (0)