Cal-Maine Cuts Cage-Free Egg Production as Interest Fades
People might say they want to buy cage-free eggs, but they're not willing to pay more for them. Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ: CALM), the largest egg producer in the U.S., has indicated that after committing significant resources to produce cage-free eggs, it doesn't make sense to do so anymore and it's cutting back on their production.
In the company's recent first-quarter earnings press release, CEO Dolph Baker said, "... the higher price gap between conventional eggs and specialty eggs has resulted in reduced demand for specialty eggs. We have adjusted our production levels in line with current customer demand for cage-free eggs, and we are well positioned to increase our capacity when demand trends change."
The 2015 declaration that McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) would be switching over to using only cage-free eggs at its 16,000 restaurants within 10 years seemed to swing things in favor of better conditions for laying hens and others that were under pressure from animal-rights activists also took the pledge. Yum Brands!'s Taco Bell, Wal-Mart, PepsiCo, and numerous restaurants, retailers, and food processors took the cage-free pledge.
Source: Fool.com
