News

Whataburger joins the cage-free movement

February 3, 2011

San Antonio-based Whataburger announced that it will switch to cage-free eggs this year. The Humane Society of the United States has applauded the chain’s efforts to move away from eggs produced by caged hens in its supply chain.

“Whataburger’s new animal welfare policy means fewer hens crammed inside tiny cages,” said Matthew Prescott, corporate outreach director of The HSUS’ factory farming campaign.

Whataburger joins a growing list of chains that have adopted a cage-free policy, including Burger King, Subway, Sonic, Wendy’s, Arby’s, Carl’s Jr. Hardees and Quiznos.

Michigan and California have passed laws that outlaw the cage confinement of hens, and similar legislation is pending elsewhere. California’s law requires that all whole eggs sold statewide be cage-free by 2015.

Whataburger’s conversion to cage-free eggs comes after a HSUS undercover investigation into a Waelder, Texas, egg factory farm owned by Cal-Maine Foods, the nation's top egg producer, which exposed rampant abuse and food safety concerns at the facility.

Whataburger has nearly 700 restaurants in Texas and 10 other states in the South and Southwest.