Six things to know about our national Animal Care Program

Canadian egg farmers follow world-class standards when it comes to caring for their hens. In fact, they must meet the requirements of our national Animal Care Program and our on-farm food safety program to receive and maintain their Egg Quality Assurance™ (EQA®) certification.

What do you need to know about animal care? Read on for a summary, or click here to download our on-farm program requirements fact sheet.

Six things to know about our national Animal Care Program:

1. The program outlines steps farmers must take to care for their hens every day.
2. It includes regular inspections and third-party audits, which hold farmers accountable and ensure standards are applied consistently across Canada.
3. It features over 100 requirements. Farmers must meet all requirements to pass their annual audit and receive their EQA® certification.
4. There are enforcement mechanisms for when requirements are not met.
5. The program is based on the National Farm Animal Care Council’s (NFACC) Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Pullets and Laying Hens, which was developed in collaboration with farmers, animal welfare advocacy groups and enforcement agencies, scientists, veterinarians, retail, government and industry representatives.
6. NFACC independently reviewed and recognized the program using their robust, multi-stakeholder, consensus-based Animal Care Assessment Framework to confirm it meets all the requirements of the Code.

Looking for even more information about the rigorous animal care and food safety standards in place on Canada’s egg farms? Click here to download our fact sheet.

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