Cage Free Capital – cracking cage cruelty in London

Sustain’s Cage Free Capital campaign is urging London boroughs, visitor attractions, arenas and stadia to turn their backs on cruelty and serve only cage free eggs.

Some eggs are still produced in cages, causing the hens a great deal of suffering. Making a switch to cage-free eggs is a simple, affordable and is a popular first step for improving animal welfare standards in catering.

Although the battery cage was banned in the EU, “enriched” cages are still in use. They are slightly less crowded than battery cages (space per hen is only 20 percent larger than a letter-size piece of paper). For more information on the welfare of laying hens and alternatives visit Compassion in World Farming website.

 

What are we eating when we go out in London?

55% of all eggs sold by supermarkets in the UK are now from hens out of cages according to the British Egg Industry Council. Unfortunately for meals eaten outside the home the picture is not so good.

We are asking iconic London attractions, arenas, stadia and their caterers to sign our Cage Free Pledge and serve only cage free eggs as a first step to eliminate cruelty in catering.

Since the beginning of this campaign, 14 iconic London attractions have either signed the pledge or got in touch stating what action they are taking to source cage free eggs.

 

	Good Eggs
	British Library – Good Egg Award by Compassion in World Farming.
	Imperial War Museum London – Signed Cage Free Pledge and now serving 100% cage free eggs.
	Tate Modern – Good Egg Award by Compassion in World Farming, sourcing the "best produce possible" from regional suppliers.
	St. Paul's Cathedral – Good Egg Award by Compassion in World Farming.
	Tate Britain – Good Egg Award by Compassion in World Farming, sourcing the "best produce possible" from regional suppliers.
	Museum of London – Signed Cage Free Pledge and now serving 100% cage free eggs.
	National Maritime Museum – Signed Cage Free Pledge and now serving 100% cage free eggs.
	National Portrait Gallery – Cage free eggs used by on-site caterer. The Gallery aspires to ensure that events caterers it chooses to work with from its supplier list use 100% cage-free eggs.
	Royal Albert Hall – Whole eggs are cage free. Looking to change all egg products to cage free.
	Southbank Centre – Some eggs are cage free. Aspires to ensure that caterers it chooses to work with from its supplier list use 100% cage free eggs.
	ZSL London Zoo - "Promoting Fairtrade, organic, local and seasonal products in our Zoo shops and cafes, including selling only sustainably sourced fish on site".
	Natural History Museum - All eggs used by on-site catering are cage-free.
	Science Museum - Cage free eggs used by on-site caterer and some event caterers. The Museum aspires to ensure that events caterers it chooses to work with from its supplier list use 100% cage-free eggs.
	Tower of London - On-site catering will source cage free eggs by the end of 2015.
	Kew Gardens - Cage free eggs used by on-site caterer.
	Victoria and Albert Museum - Cage free eggs used by on-site caterer.
	Somerset House - Cage free eggs used by on-site caterer.
	Old Royal Naval College - Cage free eggs used by on-site caterer.

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Caterers

Good Eggs

Since the start of this campaign 16 caterers have signed the Cage Free Pledge.

• Admirable Crichton
  "As a Royal Warrant holder, our exceptional standards must continue throughout our food sourcing, therefore, the decision to only use eggs from cage free hens was the only responsible choice to make." Ruth Lawton-Owen, Director.
• Benugo and Clerkenwell Green
  “Benugo and Clerkenwell Green have always had the source of our products at the forefront of all decisions regarding suppliers and menus, it was decided in 2013 to make all chicken and eggs free range across the entire business. The Cage-Free eggs pledge is a reaffirmation of this and we hope it encourages others to follow suit.” Ray Gafga, Purchasing Director
• Blue Strawberry and Table Talk
  “We made this decision over a decade ago at it was the right thing to do. As a market leader it is important to lead the way in business ethics as well as food innovation.” Ruth Lawton-Owen, Sales and Marketing Director
• Bubble Food
• By Word of Mouth
  “We believe that we have a duty to buy ethically and responsibly with a focus on animal welfare, sustainability and limiting damage to the environment. We have strong relationships with many small, independent suppliers who share our values and we buy British and seek named farm meats wherever possible.” Richard Perry, Director
• Create Food & Party Design
  “At Create we believe that we have a responsibility to operate an ethical business and offer our clients food with genuinely high animal welfare standards.” Tom Barrett, Managing Director
• Elior (National Maritime Museum)
• Elior (DONG Energy)    
  “DONG Energy is committed to using the best possible produce in our staff restaurant. As sustainability and a concern for the environment are also a priority, using free range eggs forms a part of our commitment in terms of greater animal welfare and a better quality end product." Ruth Hart-Leverton, Head of UK Internal Communications, Brand & Reputation
• Harbour and Jones
  “Harbour & Jones have been corporate members of the British Hen Welfare Trust for 6 and a half years and solely using cage free eggs since. Harbour & Jones are passionate about the origin of the food we source, the welfare of the animals and the taste of our products.” Kevin Harrison, Compliance Director
• Food by Dish
  “We have had this policy as a company for a long time now and our Head Chef pays special attention that all eggs and other ingredients that we use are ethically sourced.” Hannah Strong, Sales and Marketing Director
• Mange on the Move
• Moving Venue By Smart
• Palette Events
  As a company we all believe we have a responsibility in the welfare of animals and the environment, all our ingredients are ethically sourced. This has been our policy since the company was founded. Matthew Blythe, Director.
• Seasoned Events
• Suzanne James
  Our decision to source only cage-free eggs reinforces the focus we place on food quality and our menu to meet and exceed our customers’ expectations. We only supply seasonal, organic, sustainable food to our customers. We source ethical suppliers close to our premises in order to support local business. Suzanne James, Director.

We would like to hear from the following caterers

Many caterers responsible for on-site or event catering at many London 5-start attractions, arenas or stadia are still not taking action. We invite all caterers, attractions, arenas and stadia to take action by signing our pledge today.

• Alison Price
• Ampersand (CH&Co)
• Bovingdons
• Chester Boyd (CH&Co)
• Create
• Delaware North
• Facilities Management Catering (Compass Group)
• Jackson Gilmour
• Lettice Party
• Levy Restaurants UK (Compass Group)
• Mosimann
• Mustard Catering
• Party Ingredients
• Payne and Gunter (Compass Group)
• Rocket Food
• The London Kitchen
• Zafferano