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OP-ED: Chicken run: Making cage-free eggs a priority for Brandeis
by Jenna Brofsky and Max Fischlowitz Roberts
Op-Ed | 4/15/08
Posted online at 2:28 AM EST on 4/15/08
/ Last updated at 6:08 PM EST on 4/15/08
Brandeis is fortunate to have a wonderful team of Dining Services administrators that has been incredibly receptive to student concerns and has done great work with our student dining services committee in the two years we've been on campus. However, despite our committee's continued advocacy for a complete switch to cage-free eggs, Dining Services has not made this initiative a priority.
The vast majority of the eggs Americans and Brandeis Students eat are laid by hens that live their entire lives in small, metal "battery cages," which prevent the birds from engaging in natural behaviors like walking, spreading their wings, nesting and foraging. Over a hen's lifetime, she will have no more space in which to live than a piece of letter paper. Many birds die because of the dirty living conditions, dehydration and diseases that result from such unnatural confinement. The battery cage system causes enormous suffering.
In addition, the production of factory-farmed eggs contributes greatly to the pollution of our air and water. As such, three of the most-respected environmental organizations in the United States-the National Resources Defense Council, the National Environmental Trust and the Sierra Club-all oppose the confinement of hens in battery cages.
There is an alternative, however. Cage-free eggs are eggs that are laid by hens that have room to walk around, spread their wings and generally live a better life.
Since last fall, the Student Dining Services Advisory Committee has been advocating for Brandeis Dining Services to stop buying eggs laid by battery hens.
Switching to cage-free liquid and shell eggs is not unprecedented. In fact, major food-service providers across the country have been making the switch en masse.
Over 300 colleges and universities have made or are making the switch to cage-free eggs, including Harvard, Tufts, Georgetown, Cal-Berkeley, Dartmouth College and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition, schools like Vassar College, University of Minnesota, University of Rochester and Cal-Irvine that are Aramark clients have stopped purchasing cage eggs.
The vast majority of the eggs Americans and Brandeis Students eat are laid by hens that live their entire lives in small, metal "battery cages," which prevent the birds from engaging in natural behaviors like walking, spreading their wings, nesting and foraging. Over a hen's lifetime, she will have no more space in which to live than a piece of letter paper. Many birds die because of the dirty living conditions, dehydration and diseases that result from such unnatural confinement. The battery cage system causes enormous suffering.
In addition, the production of factory-farmed eggs contributes greatly to the pollution of our air and water. As such, three of the most-respected environmental organizations in the United States-the National Resources Defense Council, the National Environmental Trust and the Sierra Club-all oppose the confinement of hens in battery cages.
There is an alternative, however. Cage-free eggs are eggs that are laid by hens that have room to walk around, spread their wings and generally live a better life.
Since last fall, the Student Dining Services Advisory Committee has been advocating for Brandeis Dining Services to stop buying eggs laid by battery hens.
Switching to cage-free liquid and shell eggs is not unprecedented. In fact, major food-service providers across the country have been making the switch en masse.
Over 300 colleges and universities have made or are making the switch to cage-free eggs, including Harvard, Tufts, Georgetown, Cal-Berkeley, Dartmouth College and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition, schools like Vassar College, University of Minnesota, University of Rochester and Cal-Irvine that are Aramark clients have stopped purchasing cage eggs.
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Max Fischlowitz-Roberts
posted 4/15/08 @ 5:19 PM EST
Please let the student dining services committee know how you feel: email us at dine@lists.brandeis.edu
Also let the Dining Services administrators know how you feel by contacting them through their website at www. (Continued…)
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