KUALA LUMPUR, 25 March 2024 – Humane Society International, Beacon Mart, OldTown White Coffee and parent company JDE Peet’s came together on March 22 to celebrate Malaysia’s first large scale cage-free aviary housing system for hens.
The Wings of Progress for Better Welfare event marked the successful agreement between OldTown White Coffee and Teong Choon Poultry Farm to offer eggs from cage-free hens throughout the café’s Malaysian locations. The event also saw Beacon Mart committing to exclusively offer eggs from cage-free hens across their grocery chain by 2030. YB Senator Puan Saraswathy Kandasami, Deputy Minister of National Unity of Malaysia, presided over the event and delivered a keynote address highlighting the importance of improving the welfare of animals on farms.
Hens are curious, active, and social animals but most of the 105 million hens used for egg production in Malaysia are confined to small wire cages offering each hen less space than a single letter-sized sheet of paper.
Dr Laurent Sagarra, Vice President, Sustainability, JDE Peet’s, stated: “Responsible sourcing is core to the JDE Peet’s business philosophy. We care about the welfare of farm animals used in the group’s supply chain and are committed to improving their welfare. That’s why we are working towards sourcing all eggs and egg-based ingredients in our products from cage-free hens. We are grateful to Teong Choon Poultry Farm for helping us meet our sustainability goals.”
Dr. Saravanakumar Supramaniam Pillai, Senior Adviser, Farm Animal Welfare, Policy and Engagement, for HSI in Malaysia stated: “Cage confinement is outdated and doesn’t meet the scientifically documented behavioral needs of the hens. Modern cage-free systems provide more freedom of movement for the birds to walk, run, jump and stretch their wings. Hens kept for egg production are sentient beings and we must provide them with good welfare. TC Poultry is a true industry leader by being the first to market with a high volume of cage-free eggs.”
Tiew Siew Sien, owner of Teong Choon Poultry Farm, stated: “Animal welfare matters to us, and investing in new cage-free facilities is a way to provide the best possible care for our hens. It also makes good business sense. We look to our customers and consumers to support us through this journey.”
Humane Society International facilitated technical assistance for Teong Choon Poultry Farm and will continue to provide such support to the farm through their expansion and operation of the new barns, with the first barn housing over 16,000 hens. The aviary equipment for the barns will be provided by Big Dutchman, a poultry equipment company headquartered in Germany. Big Dutchman is providing after-service consulting to Teong Choon Poultry Farm to ensure the success of the first flock.
Teong Choon Poultry construction comes as a response to a growing demand for eggs from cage-free hens in Southeast Asia. Major national and international brands have adopted cage-free purchasing policies and are seeking producers by which to source eggs from cage-free hens. By sourcing from Teong Choon Poultry Farm’s new cage-free barns, OldTown White Coffee and Beacon Mart join many other brands that have taken steps to improve farmed animal welfare.
Chew Hsien Loong, CEO of Beacon Mart Holding, stated: “As producers, we understand that the society is constantly evolving and improving, having more emphasis and care about contemporary issues such as human health, environment and animal welfare. At Beacon Mart, we echo this positive intention and are working toward offering exclusively cage-free eggs as our customers’ expectations shall be our commitment. As common as it is today, the society and our customers really care about where their food comes from and how the animals that produced these products were treated.”
In Kuala Lumpur, Farm Cafe’ and Havelly restaurants exclusively use eggs from cage-free hens. In Vietnam and Thailand, brands such as Pizza4P’s, Salad Stop! and Fusion Hotels are embracing the switch. Internationally, major brands are improving the lives of millions of hens in the egg industry by enacting sweeping policies that affect all levels of the supply chain, including food manufacturers Kraft Heinz and Kellogg, hotel chains such as Hilton, Accor and Marriott International, and foodservice companies including Compass Group and Sodexo. The combined purchasing power of these companies is transforming the egg industry and the lives of hens on farms for good.
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