Chickens don't need to be killed for their eggs so there is a common misconception that eggs are a 'kind' source of food. Here are ten points that go against this belief.
Vegan on Female First
Only female chickens can produce eggs- Around 346 million male chicks are disposed of each year. Some are put in plastic bags and left to suffocate, others are thrown into large dumpsters or they are ground up alive.
Hens normally only produce 12-13 eggs per year- When on factory farms they are genetically manipulated and bred to produce 200-300 eggs per year.
Cages in factory farms are made from wire mesh- The waste from the chickens at the top falls to the chickens on the lower tiers making living conditions uncomfortable, smelly and a hotbed for infection.
A single cage is about 16-18 inches- This size of cage can hold up to 5-6 hens, but each hen has a wingspan of 32 inches so they can't stretch their wings of fly, which are both natural and normal to them.
Hens normally have a laying span of 15-20 years- The pressure to be a 'super layer' puts much more stress on them and their laying span reduces to 1-2 years at most.
A hen's egg is designed to develop into a baby chick- The shell requires just as many nutrients, particularly calcium to form. With every egg a hen produces she has to use about 10% of the calcium stored in her bones, so many hens suffer from osteoporosis and weak or broken bones as a result of the overproduction.
Many hens also die from fatty liver syndrome- Their liver cells have to work overtime to produce all the fat and protein needed for the egg yolks.
Chicks are often de-beaked on factory farms using a hot blade- They experience huge amounts of pain during this procedure as their beaks have a complex nerve supply.
Egg laying hens are sent to slaughter after 1-2 years- When their bodies are spent, they are used for human consumption even though the natural life span of a chicken is between 10-20 years.
According to the centre of disease control 1 in 10,000 eggs contain salmonella- The symptoms of which can include cramping, fever, headaches, diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting. Eating eggs has also been linked to heart disease, diabetes and cancer in many studies.
Source: PETA and www.erinjanus.com
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