ISSAQUAH, WASH. — Nestle, General Mills and Kellogg are among the major food manufacturers to announce a commitment to cage-free eggs, while Panera, McDonald’s, Dunkin’ Donuts and Subway headline the list of restaurants making the move. Now, food retailer Costco is getting in on the act.
The Issaquah-based company recently posted a statement to its web site indicating its commitment to going cage-free for its egg procurement.
“Since 2006, we have already substantially increased our percentage of cage?free eggs: in fiscal 2006 cage?free eggs represented 2% of eggs we sold, and today they represent 26%,” the company said. “In calendar 2016 we expect to sell over one billion cage-free eggs. We are working with our suppliers toward a complete and sustainable transition to a cage?free supply chain. This transition, however, will take time because currently over 90% of the supply of eggs is from caged hens and because other retailers and restaurants are also moving to cage-free requirements, placing greater demands on the limited supply.”
Costco is an American membership-only warehouse club that provides a selection of merchandise, including food. It is the second largest retailer in the world, after Wal-Mart, and the largest membership warehouse club chain in the United States. As of Nov. 11, Costco had a total of 674 warehouses spread throughout the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Mexico, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and Spain.
