Egg Production Systems
The illustration shows the differences between the production systems.
Organic Eggs
Free Range
Free range hens have access an outside enclosure as well as a barn. The barn may hold a maximum of 9 hens per m2 of usable area and must provide at least 15 cm of perch space per hen. No windows are required in free range hen farming barns, but nests are. The foraging area must account for at least 1/3 of the total site area and be covered in either straw, wood shavings, sand or turf.
The outdoor enclosure, which the hens have access to during the day, must offer at least 4 m2 per hen, and the soil should be largely covered by vegetation in the form of trees, shrubs or other kinds of living plants.
Beaktrimming is not allowed; the hens are fed conventional feed.
Barn Eggs
Barn hens live indoors, where a maximum of 9 hens are allowed per m2 of usable space. The barn must provide at least 15 cm of perch space per hen. No windows are required, but nests must be provided. The foraging area must be at least 1/3 of the site area and be covered in straw, wood shavings, sand or turf.
Beak trimming is not allowed; the hens are fed conventional feed.
Cage Eggs
In cage egg production, each cage may contain a maximum of 10 hens, and each hen must have 750 cm2 of floor space in the cage. Hens have access to perches, nests and dust bathing. The hens are fed with conventional feed.
In Denmark specifically, The Danish trade association has decided that beak trimming should not be used in enriched cage farming.