Public comment period open for pullet and laying hen handling practice amendments

Canadians have until May 26 to participate

Canadians can weigh in on proposed amendments to the National Farm Animal Care Council’s Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Pullets and Laying Hens.

The public has until May 26 to provide feedback on three parts of the overall Code – space requirements for round feeders, space allowance for pullets in aviaries, and the maximum number of tiers permitted in barn facilities.

A Code committee consisting of farmers, processors and other stakeholders worked together to bring the amendments forward.

“Canadian egg farmers are dedicated to the health and welfare of the hens under their care,” Roger Pelissero, chair of Egg Farmers of Canada, said in a statement. “The Code amendment process and its public consultation is a critical step forward in ensuring that our Code of Practice continues to be strengthened with the latest scientific evidence, as well as through input from our value chain stakeholders. We appreciate the work of NFACC in overseeing this process.”

In terms of the minimum space allowance for pullets, the proposed amendment represents almost a 36 per cent increase in allotted space per bird.

The 2017 Code of Practice mandated at least 44 square inches per bird, plus another 9 square inches in litter space for multi-tier systems.

The amendment on the table increases the minimum usable space to 72 square inches per bird, and about 2.5 times more litter space compared to 2017 requirements.

The update Code of Practice for hen and pullet handling is scheduled for a summer 2025 release.

The NFACC is working on other industry codes of practice as well.

Codes for beef cattle, poultry, equine, pigs, and sheep, are all being updated.

The beef cattle code is expected to be completed by December 2026. The others have completion dates into 2027.