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Please note that by clicking on any of the below links you will download an extract of the Initial and/or Supplementay Report, which is to be read in light of the Initial and/or Supplementary Report, the Glossary of terms and/or Supplementay Glossary of Terms and Acknowledgements and Legal.
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Section V of our Initial Report contains governance recommendations (both legal and non-legal) in respect of proposed tools and mechanisms, including for increased accountability and transparency of, and engagement with Corporations and improved welfare and well-being for the animals implicated in the Egg Industry. In addition, due to the fact that one of our aims of this Initial Report is to educate consumers and the public more broadly on animal welfare and well-being practices in and the regulation of the Egg Industry, some of the recommendations are aimed at consumers and /or the public. We believe in the adage, “knowledge is power” and by empowering consumers with knowledge related to Corporations’ welfare practices, we can encourage consumers to demand meaningful action be taken by Corporations regarding their Layer Hen and Chick welfare practices as well as by the government relating to laws to protect them.
Our recommendations include:
I. NON-LEGAL AVENUES AND TOOLS
II. LEGAL AVENUES AND TOOLS: LEGISLATION
ALRSA encourages the Selected Stakeholders who have not yet done so, as well as other stakeholders operating within the Egg Industry in South Africa to make cage free commitments. For those Corporations who have already made such Animal Welfare Commitments, these must be fulfilled through transparent reporting on their progress and any deviations therefrom. Stakeholder engagement and compliance with PAIA is one way to monitor fulfilment
In addition to making specific Cage Free Commitments, Corporations can make additional commitments which will have positive impacts on animal welfare and well-being. For example, they can introduce an Internal Policy stating that they will only procure free-range eggs or avoid certain products, or that they will not support suppliers who undertake certain Cruel Practices or supply certain products.
Corporations supplying foodstuffs, including eggs, to the public should operate in the spirit of transparency including in relation to their supply chain and sourcing. While there are numerous issues of relevance that could be highlighted in support of transparency, several specific recommendations have been included below as minimum requirements in moving towards a more transparent Egg Industry in South Africa including Reporting on Animal Welfare, Reporting on Adverse Findings, Reporting on Sourcing and Supply Chain and PAIA recommendations.
Corporations within the Egg Industry cooperate and engage with the animal protection sector in an effective manner, as important representatives of civil society (including animal, human and environmental interests) on public interest matters. This includes responding to requests (for information or engagement through meetings) in a manner that is not hostile and remaining open to hear and discuss proposals put forward (including about Animal Welfare Commitments). Civil society organisations play a crucial role in assisting the public with the enforcement of their rights and in particular, alliances of various organisations.
It is recommended that Corporations make commitments to source from certified sources with higher welfare standards and aligned with best international practices. Consumers should be informed of the existence of different Third-Party Certifications and what these standards actually require of producers, specifically in relation to eggs. This information should be made available by those stakeholders who supply eggs directly to the public – for example retailers, restaurants, fast food chains, hotels and others. This will ensure Consumers have knowledge of such Third-Party Certifications and what they mean.
It is recommended that Corporations develop, publish and implement robust internal policies relating to animal welfare, environment, and issues implicated in the other Pillars (such as in relation to consumer protection; food safety and health, and social issues and rights). Corporations should further reinforce their commitments and respective stances for enhancing animal welfare with the development of their own Internal Policies. This could include comprehensive Progressive Measures to address Cruel Practices, specifically regarding Layer Hens and Chicks. Internal Policies should contain specific references to harmful welfare practices and the stakeholder’s response towards permitting, phasing out or, optimistically, the complete prohibition of common yet harmful Cruel Practices. Furthermore, these Internal Policies should be further monitored, updated and enforced regularly to its suppliers and customers, as applicable.
South Africa should expressly recognise the sentience of animals in law as many other countries have done, as further elaborated on in the Animal Welfare Pillar in Section III of our Report.
South Africa should enact a legislative ban on the use of Battery Cages for Egg Laying Hens as several other countries have done, as further set out in the Animal Welfare Pillar in Section III of our Report.
South Africa should enact a legislative ban on the practice of beak trimming as several other countries have done, as further set out in the Animal Welfare Pillar in Section III of our Report.
South Africa should enact a legislative ban on the culling of male Chicks as well as the methods of killing them as several other countries have done, as further set out in the Animal Welfare Pillar in Section III of our Report.
South Africa should enact legislative bans on other Cruel Practices not specifically mentioned above but which are considered to be cruel and/or for which alternatives are available. This could include but not be limited to de-toeing.
South Africa should enact positive legal standards for chickens implicated in the Egg Industry, including setting out requirements aligned with the Five Domains. This is in addition to negative standards such as the prohibition of cruelty. Such standards must be legally binding and enforceable. These cannot exist merely as “soft laws” of voluntary standards.
The NSPCA (and other bodies enforcing legislation impacting the Egg Industry including but not limited to the APA) should be required to report on enforcement of the APA such as through the requirement to maintain a database of its inspections and any actions taken in respect of citations; warnings; notices; letters; and otherwise (without breaching the provisions of any other law). Consumers and members of the public should be able to access such a database to view which stakeholders and actors within their supply chain are included in the database and for what issues.
South Africa (particularly the Poultry Industry and Egg Industry) should initiate efforts in respect of ovo-sexing as well as investments into research and development for such technologies as other countries have done (as further described in the Animal Welfare Pillar in Section III above). Including requirements for this in legislation will ensure these efforts and investments are critical to reduce the suffering and killing of male Chicks.
Inclusion as listed activities and licensing: NEMA and various SEMAs impose duties of care upon stakeholders (including Layer Hen farms) to take reasonable measures to protect the environment, water resources, air quality, and to manage waste responsibly. Given the significant environmental impacts of factory farming, a full scoping and impact assessment should be required in order that the full extent and impact of the egg production process be properly assessed and considered by the DFFE. In addition, Animal well-being should also be expressly included as a consideration in the application process as well as in the licence conditions. This should be done in order to fulfil the DFFE mandate in respect of animal well-being as part of the constitutional environmental right.
It is recommended that the DFFE be obliged to conduct increased reporting on animal well-being, and not only wildlife crimes, as part of their NECERs, with express naming and shaming of Corporations that routinely commit Cruel Practices in the Egg Industry. This should be done with a level of urgency and seriousness, akin to the environmental impacts on natural resources such as water, land, water and air quality, and efforts to address climate change.
It is recommended that climate change law and policy reform should introduce specific mitigation and adaptation measures due to the significant contributions of livestock systems to GHG emissions. These could include measures such as improving manure management, soil and nutrient management, water management, implementing cooling systems, improving livestock management, and feeding practices for animals, and modifying demand practices (such as dietary choices).
Various topics discussed or introduced in this Initial Report warrant further research and exploration, and additional topics not covered, should also be further explored. A few initial suggestions include:
Section IV serves as the conclusion of this Supplementary Report arising from our comprehensive analysis and seeks to synthesise certain critical insights and propose a path forward.
Based on our research, analysis and engagements from Phase 2 (which builds on our findings from Phase 1), Part A contains our list of 13 Recommendations. Part B contains proposals for further research and potential actions, and Part C contains selected observations and concluding thoughts.
Our recommendations include:
I. NON-LEGAL AVENUES AND TOOLS
II. LEGAL AVENUES AND TOOLS: LEGISLATION
Although much of the focus of the recommendations in this section, they are not limited to Corporations but extend to and include industry bodies which Corporations are part of, and which act on their behalf, including in the poultry and Egg Industry, the SAPA and the CGCSA (although there are various other industry bodies, associations and organisations) and other industry role-players.
ALRSA encourages Phase 2 Selected Stakeholders who have not done so, as well as other stakeholders operating within the Egg Industry in South Africa to make commitments to enhance animal protection and welfare.
This includes Cage-free Commitments,other Corporate Commitments to improve animal welfare and well-being, including alternatives, Environmental Commitments and Consumer Protection Commitments.
To enhance Corporate Accountability in the Egg Industry, Corporations, industry bodies and industry representatives (among other stakeholders) can adopt several non-legal transparency measures, including reporting. This includes, among others, environmental reporting, animal welfare reporting, consumer protection reporting, reporting on adverse findings, consumer impact reporting and reporting on sourcing and supply chains.
Establishing mechanisms for open dialogue and constructive engagement can help mitigate misunderstandings and foster trust between Corporations and advocacy groups and help align business practices with societal values. By collaborating with civil society to source products that benefit animals, the environment, and people, Corporations can attract more ethically conscious consumers. Our recommendations include increase positive and pro-active engagement, collaborate on Animal welfare and well-being initiatives, initiate and implement multi-stakehoder dialogue, establish joint working groups and platforms for engagement, incorporate civil society feedback, NSPCA and SPCA Engagement and reduce negative engagement.
Third-party certifications can sometimes serve as marketing tools rather than genuine indicators of good practices in reality (in respect of animals, and the environment, among other issues). Thus, it is crucial that standards are available for critically assessment and interrogations to ensure claims are legitimate and verifiable. Our recommendations include public release of third party certifications, obtaining third party certifications, commit to sourcing from suppliers with third party certifications, consumer education and awareness in respect of third-paty certifications and assist with the development of Robust and Progressive Third-Party Certification Standards and Regular Revision.
As noted in our Initial Report,ALRSA recommends Selected Stakeholders develop and publish robust and progressive Internal Policies and regularly revise these policies. We further recommend that Selected Staekholders publicly release these internal policies, commit to souring from suppliers with internal policies, consumer education and awareness in respect of internal polcies and reporting and enforcement of Industry Standards Internal Policies.
Research related to the impacts in the Egg Industry and developments are critical in ensuring long-term animal welfare, environmental and consumer protection. Specific recommendations include releasing the NAMC Study,Conducting and releasing research and investing in developing of improved technologies.
Among our recommendations, ALRSA considers the role of industry standards and associations as critial. Our recommendations in this regard includes that Selected Stakeholders join Industry Bodies, development of orbust and progessive industry standards and regular revision therof, publically release industry standards, consumer education and awareness in respectof industry standards and reportingon and enfrcementof industry standards.
Consumers (including with the assistance and support of civil society organisations and other stakeholders) are encouraged to utilise (both legal and) non-legal avenues to have their voices heard and ensure their rights and interests are protected. This is particularly so in the case of apparent Corporate Hypocrisy, and instances where they may perceive harmful practices such as Greenwashing, Humane-washing, Blue-washing and Health-washing to be occurring. Among our recommendations, we include education around products, practices and impacts, advocate for cage-free commitments, demand transparency from corporations, initiate or participate in organised campaigns, participate in boycotts and protests, advocate for responsible sourcing, utlise consumer feedback mechanisms, support civil society organisations, lay ccomplaints and support legislative reform.
The following avenues and tools are legal in nature, and therefore require action by one of the three branches of government: legislature, executive and/or judiciary. Nevertheless, members of the public, consumers and civil society organisations play a key role to play in getting these issues on the political agenda and/or bringing them to the attention of Corporations in the Egg Supply Chain. Furthermore, some of the recommendations relate to compliance with existing law, which includes obligations for Corporations and other recommendations include legal tools which members of the public, consumers, civil society organisations and others can utilise to ensure the enforcement of their rights, legal protections and obligations and duties of relevant stakeholders.
Within our reports, we note tha tanimal law has significants shortcomings. There are several critical legislative reforms which should be enacted and enhanced enforcement for greater animal protection within the Egg Industry. Our recommendations in this regard include updates in respect of prohibited activities, inuding specifically on battery cages, beak trimming, male chick culling, among others. We further recommend mandatory posiitve legal standards, explicit recognition of sentience, ovo-sexing legislative efforts, and enforcement of animal laws, among others.
Our reports note that stakeholders should consistently uphold the objectives of PAIA, which include promoting transparency, accountability, and the public’s right of access to information. When engaging with requests for access to records—particularly those submitted by civil society organisations acting in the public interest—stakeholders (including industry bodies) should prioritise reasonable and constructive engagement. These recommendations include PAIA-related recommendations, increased animal welfare and well-being reporting, increased environmental reporting, consumer protection reporting, reporting on adverse findings, community impact reporting, reporting on sourcing and supply chains and whistleblower protection recommendations.
Our report recommends specific reform to environmental laws and enforcement. Specific recommendtions include NEMA-and-SEMA-related reforms, animal well-being as a license/permit consideration, animal well-being proposals, mitigation measures in climate law and policy specific to animal agriculture, establishing dedicated fora for adjudicating environmental matters and regulating on matters relating to climate change.
The use of words and imagery that can be misleading to consumers must be eliminated from the Egg Industry. There should be clear requirements for labelling and marketing of egg and egg-related products. Where laws do exist, they must be properly enforced. As such, we provide various recommendations namely enforcement of existing labelling laws including APSA egg labelling regulations, amendments and clarifications relating to egg labelling regulations, reular auditing and compliance checks, implementation of strict penalities for non-compliance, regulatory mechanisms and bodies to enforce consumer rights and mandatory eco-labelling.
Our recommendations further call for the establishment of governmental fora. Specific recommendations include farmed animal protection forum and the establishment of national advisory forum for animals.
The following items have been identified for further research and/or actioning which seek to enhance our understanding of the egg and poultry industries in (South) Africa, and the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders.
