Economic impacts of banning the enriched cage housing system in Hungarian table egg production

This study aims to examine the economic impacts of phasing out enriched cages in Hungarian table egg production. An online questionnaire survey was conducted among 42 enriched cage egg producers and in-depth interviews were carried out with barn and aviary egg producers, as well as a company specialised in designing and implementing housing systems for laying hens, using economic and physical efficiency data for the year 2021 from egg producers. Economic situation was examined via a simulation model, which was based on on deterministic principles. The results indicate that aviary and barn housing systems exhibit lower physical efficiency and weaker economic indicators when compared to the enriched cage housing system. Aviaries and barns showed reduced egg production per hen (-7% and -12%, respectively), increased feed conversion ratio (FCR) (+17% and +24%), reduced labour efficiency (-40% in both cases), and increased mortality rate (+2.49 and +3.31 percentage points). Key determinants of unit gross margin alterations were found to be egg production per hen, the share of class ‘A’ eggs, FCR, and pullet acquisition cost. Aviary housing systems proved as profitable as enriched cage systems in terms of gross margin per egg, whereas barn housing systems were unprofitable based on 2021 data. However, those barn eggs producers who sell directly to consumers can still be profitable. The investment payback periods of enriched cage (7 years) and aviary (10 years) housing system differ. In conclusion, aviaries and barns could not outperform the enriched cage housing system in economic terms.