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New rules cage farmers
3 Jan 2007
New regulations, designed to improve conditions for hens, will force farmers to increase cage sizes from 450sq cm to 550 sq cm per bird. Queensland will enforce the changes by the end of this year, as will Victoria, except for farmers who bought cages between 1997 and 2000 who will have until 2015 to comply with the animal welfare measures. Warren Starick, South Australian Farmers Federation poultry section chair and egg producer, has stated that egg supply is unlikely to meet demand due to the changes and that up to 35 of the state’s caged-hen farmers could sell their operations because they could not afford to comply with the regulations. The SA Agricultural Minister, Rory McEwen, has rejected calls for a $23 million compensation package for farmers as the changes were first revealed in 2000.
The Australian, 01/03/2007
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