article thumbnail

From Today's New York Times

Animal Ethics

They’re about protecting a system that produces cheap food. The idea that eggs from free-range chickens are somehow morally superior to other eggs is, frankly, weird. BOBBIE MULLINS Norfolk, Va., 21, 2012 To the Editor: Blake Hurst’s observations about happy pigs and unhappy farmers aren’t about the well-being of either.

article thumbnail

From Today's New York Times

Animal Ethics

The rooster watches over the flock protectively and often participates in a hen’s egg-laying ritual, an extremely important and private part of her life. Free range” does not solve the problem of painful debeaking, enormously oversized flocks or the unnatural isolation of the birds from other sexes and age groups.