Almost half of UK adults haven’t a clue how to make pancakes and a quarter don’t know they contain eggs

The survey, carried out by YouGov for RSPCA Assured - the only farm assurance scheme in the UK solely dedicated to farmed animal welfare – revealed that despite the majority of the pancake making public wanting to make better choices for hen welfare, they are clueless about egg production and what could be lurking in their food.

This Pancake Day, RSPCA Assured is encouraging everyone who chooses to eat eggs to look for cage-free and preferably those with the RSPCA Assured label.

Kate Parkes, RSPCA hen welfare expert, said: “Something as simple as not knowing what ingredients are in a pancake might seem innocuous and funny, but it exposes an important truth - we just don’t know enough about what we are eating and where our food comes from.

“People want to make ethical food choices, for example 60% of people who make pancakes said it is important to them that the ingredients come from higher-welfare farms3. But many don’t realise that everyday foods, like pancakes, depend on egg production and nearly 20% of UK egg production comes from caged hens4.

“This lack of knowledge could mean people are inadvertently supporting lower welfare farming and funding cruel practices such as hens being kept in cages. If everyone knew more about what’s in their food, they might think twice before they buy and make higher welfare choices."

In the UK, around eight million hens (20%) spend most of their lives cramped in cages, unable to move around freely, stay active and perform natural behaviours - like dustbathing. This leaves them stressed and frustrated, which means they can resort to distressing behaviours like birds pulling out each other's feathers or left with bald patches from where their heads and necks have rubbed on the bars when they poke their heads out to feed.

“Lots of people think cages are a thing of the past but they couldn’t be more wrong.” Kate continued. “The old battery cage was banned in Europe in 2012, but many were just replaced by a new type of cage called a ‘colony’ or ‘enriched cage’. In reality, these are not much better and only give each hen about as much space as the size of a large pancake, which is totally unacceptable.

“Whilst the majority of eggs sold in UK supermarkets are now cage-free, not all of them are, so it’s still really important that shoppers read the label.”

Supermarkets, including Aldi, Co-op, Marks & Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose have already met their commitment to only supply cage-free eggs. A number of other retailers have also pledged to be cage-free in 2025, but the clock is ticking for them to achieve this.

The RSPCA Assured label means that hens are never kept in cramped cages. Instead they live cage-free lives on free range or organic farms or inside cage-free barns with plenty of space to move around. All RSPCA Assured certified egg producers - whether free-range, organic or barn - must meet nearly 700 strict standards all aimed at improving hen welfare. These standards include providing perches, nest boxes and enrichment items like straw bales and pecking objects, which allow hens to express natural behaviours such as nesting, foraging and perching.

“We all have the power to help more hens live cage-free by simply choosing cage-free eggs.” Kate added. “We know the public care about this issue and show their support for cage-free hens at the supermarket with over 70% of all boxed egg sales now being free-range.

“However, unlike boxes of eggs which are clearly marked with the method of production, there isn’t the same requirement to declare the kinds of eggs used as ingredients, such as in pancake mixes. This means people could be unwittingly buying eggs from caged hens. Hens aren't the only farmed animals kept in cages and we are calling on the UK Government to ban cages for all farmed animals and want to see this cruel practice urgently consigned to the past.”

Visit RSPCA Assured’s website for more information on hen welfare: www.rspcaassured.org.uk/solelydedicated/