Free Range Eggs

What it means to be "Free Range"

The key difference with free-range egg farming is the hens’ access to the outdoors.

Commercial free-range farms can house just a few hundred birds to many thousands. The NZ Code of Welfare states "Openings must be at least 35 cm high and 40cm wide and evenly distributed along the building to allow hens free access without risk of smothering or injury." 

Because the hens range outdoors and can therefore be more vulnerable to disease, predators, parasites and weather, close monitoring and other preventative measures are very important in managing the health and welfare of free-range flocks.