The Commercial Egg Industry Should Consider Controlled Atmosphere Stunning for Spent Hens

Unlike the broiler industry, where individual companies maintain ownership of flocks through farm production and processing, commercial egg flocks sent for slaughter are sold to a fowl processing company. The processing company catches and transports the hens from the farm. Egg companies typically do not see themselves as being responsible for a hen’s welfare once ownership of the bird is transferred, and what happens to spent hens after that tends to fall under the radar.