Sector sheet

🚜 Sector

🐔 laying hens

Laying hens come from specialized lines producing eggs for human consumption. Eggs destined to become laying hens are incubated in specialized buildings called "hatcheries". Only female chicks are kept, male chicks being eliminated at birth. Once they have become pullets, at the age of

Male chicks are eliminated at birth, while female chicks are selected and kept. Pullets begin their laying cycle at the age of 4-5 months, and it lasts around 12-13 months, during which the hen can lay around 300 eggs. Laying hens generally go through one laying cycle before being culled and sent to the slaughterhouse, where their meat is sold, mainly in processed form.

There are 5 types of laying hen farms, identified on packaging and eggs by a code:

Organic (code 0), where hens have totally free access to the outdoors. Indoors, they are provided with nests and perches. This type of farming consumes no pesticides or fertilizers, and the use of GMOs is prohibited. They are also fed at least 95% organic feed.
Free-range (code 1), hens are housed in a floor building or aviary and have daily access to a run outside, on a partially planted area of at least 4 m2 each.
Free-range (code 2), where hens are housed in enclosed buildings where they can move freely on the floor, but have no access to the outdoors to avoid contact with bacteria. The words "eggs from hens raised on the ground" are marked on the box.
In enriched cages (code 3), with a nest, perches and a pecking and scratching area, where hens are kept in groups of 12 to 60 hens. This is a form of industrial poultry rearing designed to increase yields by making the farm denser.

Soil-based, free-range and organic farming methods are known as "alternative".

There are also "Label Rouge" farms (identified by code 1) that respect 5 key principles:.

Breed hardy hens selected for their slow growth and meat quality.
Large grassy, shaded areas.
100% vegetable feed, based on cereals and vegetable proteins such as soy.
Longer hen lifespan compared with standard poultry.
Respect for sanitary safety, with hygiene conditions systematically controlled.

📈 Production & consumption

🌍 Worldwide

Based on available data (FAO, IEC, Eurostat and national sources), ITAVI estimates that global production of hen eggs for consumption will amount to almost 79.6 million tonnes of shell egg equivalent (teoc) in 2022, or around 1,490 billion eggs. This represented a drop of 0.8% compared to 2021, due in particular to the decline in the USA (- 3.1%) and the EU-27 (- 0.6%).

In 2022, inflation, the war in Ukraine and avian influenza had contrasting impacts on the world market. Avian influenza is a highly contagious viral animal disease. In its highly pathogenic form, it can cause up to 100% flock mortality and periods of significant production losses. In 2022, the USA was the country most affected by the epizootic, with over 45 million layers affected.

China remains the world's leading producer of eggs for consumption, with 32% of global production, ahead of the European Union-27 (8%) and India (7.3%), which is ahead of the USA, previously in 3rd place (7.2%).

🇪🇺 In Europe

There are over 350 million laying hens in the European Union (EU). They produce nearly 6.7 million tonnes of eggs a year (source). In 2022, the top egg-producing countries in Europe were France, Germany and Spain, each accounting for 14% of production, or 14.4 billion eggs (896,000 tonnes).

In France, the region with the most laying hens is Brittany (42% in 2020), followed by Pays-de-la-Loire, Hauts de France and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Egg consumption in France will amount to 235 eggs per capita in 2021 (average smoothed over 3 years), 36% of which in the form of egg products.

Dynamics and patterns in EU and USA egg and poultry meat production and trade - Scientific Figure on ResearchGate

🇫🇷 Challenges facing the French egg industry

The French egg industry faces a number of major economic, social, environmental and regulatory challenges - the 3 main ones being:

Transition to more animal-welfare-friendly farming systems: France, like other European countries, is facing increasing pressure to improve the welfare of laying hens. This includes the reduction or elimination of cage rearing in favor of more animal-friendly systems, such as free-range or organic rearing.
Environmental sustainability: There is a growing need to make egg production more sustainable, by reducing environmental impacts such as greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, pollution and the use of chemicals.
Food safety and traceability: Ensuring the quality and safety of eggs is essential. The industry must therefore meet strict standards in terms of traceability, disease control and sanitary risk management.

Impact factors

💨 Carbon emissions

The carbon intensity of chicken eggs varies from country to country, between 2.63 kg CO2eq/kg and 4.07 kg CO2eq/kg (source).

Some scientists liken the carbon footprint of a dozen eggs to that of other animal proteins, such as milk. Ademe estimates the carbon intensity of chicken eggs at 3.17 kg CO2 eq/kg.

The main impact factors are methane and ammonia emissions from hens, even if these are much lower than those from cattle.

<aside> 🌡️ The Bleu-Blanc-Coeur (BBC) association approached ADEME in 2018 to include its products in the AGRIBALYSE database following work carried out with INRAE between 2013 and 2016. The results of this study show that - for a peril "from cradle to farm gate" - a BBC free-range egg (2.23 kgCO2/kg) would emit 20% less CO2 than a conventional free-range egg (2.78 kgCO2/kg) (source: Bleu Blanc Coeur)

</aside>

🐝 Biodiversity Impacts

The impact on biodiversity is identified at several levels:

Land use: The conversion of natural land to agricultural land for the production of cereals for laying hen feed can result in the loss of natural habitats, such as forests, grasslands and wetlands. This can have a negative impact on local biodiversity, displacing or fragmenting native animal and plant populations.
Deforestation: As the feed for laying hens consists, among other things, of soya, massively imported from South and North America, the latter can contribute to deforestation.
Waste and pollution management: Inadequate management of poultry farm waste, such as hen droppings, can lead to water and soil pollution. In fact, when they decompose, animal droppings release nitrogen, a source of microbial pollution and responsible for the proliferation of algae when discharged into water. Furthermore, the chemicals used to treat hen parasites and diseases can also have an impact on the surrounding biodiversity.

💦 Water consumption

Egg production requires a significant amount of water for watering hens, producing feed grain and cleaning facilities.

The Water Footprint network estimates that the average global consumption of water for egg production is 3,300 m3 /tonne.

How can I source my products to reduce their impact?

🇫🇷 Give preference to eggs laid in France (these are marked FR on the packaging or shell, or with the label Oeufs Pondus en France).
⭐ Choose a label that respects the environment

⭐ Which label(s) for which guarantee(s)?

Organic Farming (AB):** Eggs bearing this label are produced according to organic farming standards. This means that hens are raised under more natural conditions, with access to open air, organic feed and no use of synthetic pesticides or antibiotics.
Label Rouge eggs respect 5 key principles:
- Breed hardy hens selected for their slow growth and meat quality.
- Raising hens outdoors in large, grassy, shaded areas.
- 100% vegetable feed, based on cereals and vegetable proteins such as soy.
- Longer hen life compared with standard poultry.
- Respect for sanitary safety, with hygiene conditions systematically controlled.
Eggs are collected and sorted by hand twice a day, and the quality of Label Rouge eggs is regularly tested.
Protected Geographical Indication (PGI): This is a European label that designates a product whose characteristics are linked to the geographical area in which it is produced, manufactured or processed. The PGI label is based on the notion of know-how. This is notably the case for eggs from Loué, a village in Maine, whose poultry are raised in the open air on vast meadows, with a minimum space requirement of 4 m2 per animal. They are raised for a minimum of 84 days, compared with 40 for a standard chicken.
Œufs de France: The "Œufs de France" logo identifies eggs laid in France, by hens born and raised in the country.
Bleu-Blanc-Cœur label: This label focuses on improving the nutritional quality of agricultural products by influencing the diversity and quality of animal feed. Eggs bearing this label come from hens fed on specific feeds, such as linseed and rapeseed, as well as a mixture of peas and faba beans, partially replacing soya. In addition to the impact on the nutritional qualities of these eggs, this diversified feed reduces the carbon footprint.
Free-range eggs: This term indicates that the hens have access to the outdoors, but does not necessarily guarantee constant access or a specific space per bird. Conditions may vary from producer to producer.
Demeter : Les poules pondeuses des oeufs labellisés Demeter sont élevées avec des coqs (2 par tranche de 100 poules), afin de maintenir leur hiérarchie naturelle. Elles bénéficient d’un bâtiment d’élevage et d’un parcours extérieur adaptés et leur alimentation comprend une partie de grains entiers et répandus sur le sol pour qu’elles puissent gratter pour s’alimenter et ainsi conserver leur comportement spontané.