Barilla Pasta Goes Cage-Free

Barilla, the world's largest pasta manufacturer, says it believes food "is a joyful convivial experience, is taste, is a form of sharing and caring." Barilla just took a step towards that mission statement. The company recently became the first pasta maker to commit to the Humane Society of the United States' (HSUS) cage-free egg campaign. This year, Barilla will switch 45 percent of the eggs in its supply chain over to cage-free eggs.

Barilla is the most recent company to join the cage-free egg movement, which now includes grocery stores, restaurant chains, food service companies, and major producers like Kraft, Sara Lee, and Harry & David. Considering how many eggs go into pasta, this change will have a serious impact. In a letter to the HSUS, Barilla said, "Product quality, safety, nutrition and sustainability are key pillars for our Company. To this end, Barilla’s policy on supply chain management takes into consideration not only health and wellbeing of people, but also the health and wellbeing of animals."

Switching to cage-free eggs means that the hens producing Barilla's eggs will not be confined to tiny battery cages. These cages are about the size of a piece of copy paper; they're so small that hens can't even spread their wings. There are currently about 280 million hens throughout the U.S. confined in battery cages like these. Due to their cruelty, these cages are on their way out in some places. California and Michigan have banned battery cages, as has Switzerland, and the European Union will be phasing out battery cages soon.

Not only are the cages cruel, they're unhealthy for both people and animals. Keeping hens locked up in such close quarters with no access to the outdoors makes for dirty conditions rife with feces, rodents, and even maggots. Bacterial contamination easily spreads from bird to egg or from the surrounding environment to consumers' eggs. Factory farm conditions were the main reason so many folks came down with salmonella poisoning this past summer.

Matthew Prescott, corporate outreach director of the HSUS’ factory farming campaign, says of Barilla's cage-free move, "We applaud the company for taking animal welfare seriously by partially switching to cage-free eggs, and we hope others in the food industry follow its lead.”

We share the Humane Society's hope that Barilla will set off a wider trend in the food industry and in pasta production. That's why we're asking New World Pasta — the leading branded dry pasta manufacturer in the United States and Canada and producer of Ronzoni, Prince, and other pastas — to join Barilla and commit to using cage-free eggs in the company's pastas. Sign our petition, and join the movement for the better, healthier treatment of hens.

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