China, is the world’s leading egg producer responsible for 40 percent of output. In 2022 the Nation produced 49 billion dozen from a flock of 3.3 billion hens but with a corresponding 180 eggs per hen on average. This denotes inefficiency on a national scale attributed to a combination of modern complexes achieving international standards compared to more primitive production systems with disproportionally lower yield.

The rise of supermarkets in urban areas and growing disposable income among affluent demographics has created a demand for specialty eggs.  Large egg producers including Hubei Shendan, Ovodan, Dalian Hanwei, Fujian and Guangyang and Tiancheng have initiated production of cage-free eggs involving large complexes equipped with aviaries and in-line grading installations.

Liu Wen, Marketing Director in China for Big Dutchman, stated, “Globally, the number of egg-laying hens raised in our cage-free system has increased from100 million in 2019 to over 160 million today.  This rapid transition towards cage-free production is evident worldwide and China is poised to become a significant market for these eggs.”  He added, “We will expedite the localization of most components, minimize costs and offer competitive pricing to cater for the growing interest in cage-free production.”

Lever China, a Shanghai based consultancy group is promoting cage-free production systems in response to consumer and corporate demand.  It is evident that China has more cage-free hens in production than the U.S. that has the advantage of a decade lead.

Interest in cage-free production in China is evidenced by a large delegation of producers who attended the 2024 IPPE to evaluate available equipment and to review production procedures.