World Animal Day and Feast of St Francis

Annually, on 4 October, we celebrate World Animal Day and the Feast of St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals and ecology. It is an opportunity to reflect on our relationship with the creatures with whom we share this Earth.

St Francis saw animals as part of the community of life, deserving of care and dignity - he did not see them as resources. That conviction sits at the heart of everything we do at SAFCEI, which is reflected specifically in our cage-free eggs campaign.

Approximately 27 million egg-laying hens are confined in battery cages in South Africa right now: amounting to 95% of the egg production.

Confining hens in cages means that they are unable to enjoy this planet and practise their natural behaviors such as spreading their wings, nesting, perching, or dust bathing. This treatment shows us vividly that this method of production is built on a system that prioritises profit over sentient creatures. This cruelty is a sign of a broken system.

We have an industrial food industry that reduces animals to commodities. This food industry also degrades local ecosystems, undermines smallholder farmers and promotes a model of corporate dominance that prioritises profit over life.

Beyond the cruelty experienced by egg-laying hens in battery cage systems, the egg industry also culls male chicks right after they are bred. This is often missing in the conversation, however, it deserves attention to and demonstrates how inhumane and cruel the egg industry truly is. The magnitude of the killing and the abuse the egg industry breeds goes against all the values and teaching of St. Francis.

This World Animal Day is a moment to make the invisible visible. As people of faith caring for living Earth, it is our collective responsibility to address issues such as this one. Moving from domination to care requires concrete action, not just ethical sentiment.

Our cage-free work aims at ending this cruelty and promoting food systems that are ethical, sustainable and allow hens to range freely. Egg production methods do not need to be driven only by profit while abusing the very same sentient beings that support it. There has to be a transition from these cruel practices to more humane and sustainable principles and standards.

This World Animal Day, let us choose compassion over indifference, accountability over empty promises - and a food system that truly honours all of creation. To every corporate, retailer, manufacturer and restaurant still sourcing from battery cage systems; the door is open. The transition is manageable and the moment is now.

By Zwelisha Shobede, Cage-Free Campaign Coordinator, SAFCEI.