The egg sector is only five years away from the 2012 EU cage ban, which will see 280 million hens re-housed in alternative systems such as free range and enriched cages.
So it was surprising to receive a press release today from a group of European research institutes outlining a new £3.1m (€4.6m) EU project looking into whether eggs produced in alternative systems have a lower hygienic quality. It will also develop new approaches to improve microbial safety in these alternative production systems.
This is because the move to alternative systems has raised fears of a resurgence of food-borne infections because of possible contact between eggs and litter, which can contain pathogens.
It is due to report in three years time, which only leaves two years to implement any measures if needed. So does this mean the new cage rules are not based on science, as many in the industry have for long suspected?
Surely this work should have been carried out years ago. New rules that aim to improve bird welfare could in fact have an impact on egg quality.