The Problem: Every year, millions of farmed animals are confined to cages for all or part of their life. The UK still uses farrowing crates for pigs, and “enriched” cages for layer hens. These cages severely restrict natural movements and behaviours. Such confinement is cruel and unnecessary.

Some use of cages have already been phased out in many places due to the inhumane conditions and the EU Commission has signalled its intentions to ban cages.

Public support within the UK is also high for a ban. A parliamentary petition calling for an end to caged farming secured over 100,000 signatures and polling carried out by YouGov found that 77% support a complete ban on the use of cages in farming.

The Solution: With overwhelming public opposition and more humane alternatives already in use, it is time for the UK to enact legislation prohibiting the caged confinement of farmed animals.

We ask the government to legislate a fixed phase out period for the use of cages such as farrowing crates and enriched cages, with transitional support for farmers during the phase out.

The Problem: Around one billion chickens are raised for meat in the UK every year. The vast majority of them are fast-growing breeds, known as "Frankenchickens": birds bred to grow up to four times faster than chickens did in the 1950s, reaching slaughter weight in as little as 35 days. Their bodies cannot keep up with their own growth. They suffer chronic lameness, heart and lung failure, and hock burns from lying in their own waste, often too heavy to stand. Many suffer from the day they hatch to the day they are slaughtered.

Industry was given the chance to fix this voluntarily and has walked away. Many UK companies had committed to phasing out these breeds under the Better Chicken Commitment. In February 2026, eight businesses representing 18 leading high-street brands, including KFC, Nando's, Burger King and Wagamama, abandoned those commitments, condemning hundreds of millions more chickens to suffer. They cited a lack of supply, arguing the UK poultry industry is not yet in a position to deliver the change.

The public wants better. More than 80% of UK shoppers say they are concerned about chicken welfare, and 71% would pay more for higher-welfare meat if it were clearly available to them. Yet shoppers currently have no way of knowing which breed they are buying. The government has already acknowledged the problem in its Animal Welfare Strategy, stating it wants the industry to change.

The Solution: Where the market has failed, government has the tools to act.

We ask the government to commit to:

• Changing public procurement policy so that no fast-growing breeds are bought for schools, hospitals, prisons or the armed forces. The public sector spends billions on food each year and should not be funding the worst welfare outcomes.

• Mandatory method of production labelling on all fresh and processed chicken products, so shoppers can identify fast-growing breeds and choose otherwise. Transparency rewards the producers already doing the right thing.

• Supporting the industry to transition, addressing the supply constraints so that slower-growing breeds become viable at scale.

The Problem: There is strong evidence that fish can have subjective experiences, emotional states, and feel pain. Despite this, farmed fish have less legal protections than other farmed animals and endure significant suffering and mistreatment due to the absence of tailored welfare regulations.

They face overcrowded living conditions, lice infestations, and disease outbreaks, as well as horrific slaughter practices. Without proper standards in place, farmed fish are vulnerable to pain and neglect. Undercover investigations have documented farmed fish being starved, suffocated, and bludgeoned to death.

Polling demonstrates support for fish welfare, with 71% agreeing fish should have the same legal protections during slaughter as other animals such as chickens and cows.

The Solution: To address these issues, we urge policymakers to implement legal minimum welfare and slaughter requirements for farmed fish in the UK.

These standards should ensure that both their physical and mental needs are met. This includes appropriate living conditions, good water quality, and opportunities to exhibit natural behaviours. By enacting these regulations, the UK can demonstrate its high commitment to animal welfare. 

Additionally, public education efforts can raise awareness about the importance of humane treatment for all animals, including fish, fostering a culture of compassion and responsibility towards all animals killed for food.