Egg Producers Federation New Zealand
  • Home
  • About Eggs
    • About EPF
    • About Layer Hens
    • Education Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Useful Links
    • Glossary
    • Did You Know?
  • Farming Eggs
    • Egg Farming in NZ
    • Meet our Farmers
    • Farming Types
      • The Colony Cage Environment
      • Barn
      • Free-Range
      • Conventional cages
      • Backyard
    • The Code of Welfare (updated 2018)
    • Farming Standards
    • Caring for Hens
    • Starting a Commercial Farm
  • Eating Eggs
    • Affordable Nutrition
    • Buying Quality Eggs
    • Egg Labelling
    • Eating & Cooking
  • Egg News
    • Media Statements
    • Comments & Opinions
    • Video & Images
    • Publications, Reports and Statistics
  • Good Eggs
    • Farming Standards
      • RMP
    • Welfare Science
    • Biosecurity & Bird Health
    • Training & Development
  • Sign In

Home» Egg Farming in NZ » Farming Types » Free-Range

Free-Range

Freerange
Freerange Shed

Meet our farmers

Out and about

The key difference with free-range egg farming is the hens’ access to the outdoors.

The shelter provided may be fixed or portable, such as a shed, aviary, perchery or ark. In larger farms, flocks are housed in sheds fitted, which include nest boxes and perches, and birds are able to access the outdoors through pop-holes in the shed walls.


Commercial free-range farms can house just a few hundred birds to many thousands.

At a glance:

  • Outdoor stocking density (maximum)
    • NZ Code of Welfare: 2,500 hens/ha
    • EU standard: 2,500 hens/ha
    • NZ SPCA: 2,000 hens/ha
  • Flock sizes
    • NZ Code of Welfare: Not specified, dependent on individual farm land size
    • EU standard: Not specified, dependent on individual farm land size
    • NZSPCA: 5,000 hens/enclosure
  • Indoor stocking density
    • NZ Code of Welfare: 9 hens/m2
    • EU standard: 9 hens/m2
    • NZSPCA: 7 hens/m2
  • Pop-holes
    • NZ Code of Welfare: Openings must be at least 35 cm high and 40cm wide and evenly distributed along the building to allow hens free access without risk of  smothering or injury.
    • EU standard: 2m of pop-hole per 1,000 hens
    • NZ SPCA: 1 pop-hole (at least 45cm high by 1m wide) per 600 hens

Because the hens range outdoors and can therefore be more vulnerable to disease, predators, parasites and weather, close monitoring and other preventative measures are very important in managing the health and welfare of free-range flocks.

Free-range birds makes up approximately 34% of the national layer flock (December 2021). Consumption of free-range eggs has increased over recent years at a rate of approximately 1% per year.

 

Email

Latest News

  • No cage eggs to be produced after 31 December 2022
  • MPI Press Release re No Further Salmonella Enteritidis Detected
  • Food Item Cost Per Gram Protein Comparison (updated December 2022)
  • Rapid Antigen Testing (RAT) – Stockists

    Meet Our Farmers

    • Chris Martin, Wairarapa Eggs

      Chris Martin of Wairarapa Eggs aspires to provide the perfect egg for whatever his customers need it for. The perfect...

    • Laurie Horsfall, Hawkes Bay Eggs

      At Hawkes Bay Eggs the farm is a true family business. Between Laurie, his wife, two daughters and son, all...

    • Karen Kelly, Glenpark

      Karen could be best described as Glenpark’s ‘mother hen’. As farm manager in charge of more than 20 full and...

    • Graeme Napier, Henergy

      Graeme is somewhat of a farming pioneer in New Zealand, having been inspired to introduce modern barn farming to the...

    About the Egg Producers Federation

    The Egg Producers Federation of New Zealand Inc. (EPF) represents the interests of all the commercial egg producers in this country.

    Helpful Links

    • I Love Eggs (Inc)
    • Ministry for Primary Industries
    • NZ Feed Manufacturers Association
    • Poultry Industry Association New Zealand
    • WorkSafe New Zealand

    Have a Question? Contact Us

    • +64 09 520 4300
    • +64 09 520 1553
    • [email protected]

    © 2017 Egg Producers Federation New Zealand