Which free range eggs should you buy?

So now you know that you don't want to support prison eggs. You're not alone.

Many consumers want to do the right thing and buy free range eggs from farms with high animal welfare standards, but it’s not always clear from the labels on the egg cartons whether the eggs are from genuine free range farms and whether you're getting what you pay for.

Nice pictures of happy hens or phrases such as “fresh eggs” or “vegetarian fed hens” don’t mean that the eggs are from free range farms. In fact, if the egg carton doesn't describe the production method (for example, “cage eggs”, “barn laid” or “free range”), you can probably assume that the eggs were laid by battery hens under terrible conditions.

And even if the eggs are labelled “free range”, what does that mean? Who sets the standards? Who checks the farms and what stake do they have in the process? What do all the numbers mean, and how are you supposed to know what's normal for a happy hen?

Remember - there is no uniform and legally enforceable definition for free range eggs! The lack of leadership by the State and Federal Governments on this issue has resulted in many different interpretations of the term "free range", which can be confusing for producers and consumers alike.

The good news is that you don't need to know. There is a brand that you can trust every time.

The Free Range Egg Production Auditing Scheme (FREPAS) is an audit scheme run by Animal Liberation SA to identify, accredit and promote producers of genuine free range eggs in South Australia. Producers who treat hens like this.

When you buy eggs from any of these producers, you can be sure that they are genuine free range eggs that come from farms with high animal welfare standards:

Fryar's Free Range Eggs
Katham Springs Biodynamic Eggs
Meringa Farm Eggs

Just look for any of these brands or the "audited by Animal Liberation" sticker that appears on the right-hand side of this page. However, please be aware that Katham Springs Biodynamic Eggs do not use the Animal Liberation sticker even though they meet all of our stringent guidelines and carry full accreditation.

Alternatively, you can access a list of retailers who supply Animal Liberation accredited eggs here.

We have very stringent animal welfare standards, and we do not charge any fees, commissions or receive benefits of any kind from producers who participate in our scheme. This means that when you purchase eggs that have been audited by Animal Liberation, you can be sure that the eggs have been produced according to strict guidelines. You can also be certain that no shifty deals or commercial interests sit behind our labelling scheme, so you can be sure that you're getting exactly what you paid for.

Like healthy eggs that come from happy hens and free range farms like these.

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