A huge change to the way eggs can legally be labelled and sold at shops including supermarkets like Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons or Aldi and Lidl is being put in place by government.

Shoppers of a conscientious persuasion in particular might be troubled by a change to egg box packaging which will conceal when “free range” egg laying hens are actually being kept inside barns.

The government has today announced a change to the law around egg labelling for egg producers and packers. When the new law is put into place later this year, egg producers will no longer have to amend packaging to reflect when free range hens are put into ‘hen lockdown’ inside barns during periods of bird flu outbreaks.

When outbreaks of bird flu happen, even free range chickens are brought into barns and cages in order to stop the spread of the fatal disease.

The government announced: “Currently, when mandatory housing measures are introduced to protect birds from the spread of disease, eggs from free-range birds can only continue to be labelled as ‘free-range’ for 16 weeks after the housing order has come into effect - the existing ‘derogation’ period under the Egg Marketing Standards Regulations. After that period, these eggs must then be labelled as barn eggs.”

But the 16-week period is being scrapped, after the government said this limit was exceeded twice, by 13 weeks in total in 2021-22 and 2022-23, “which led to significant costs for the industry” because all labels and packaging had to be changed after hens were kept inside for longer than 16 weeks.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “The amends to existing legislation, which will be introduced through a Statutory Instrument later this year, will mean that free-range eggs can continue to be labelled as such throughout mandatory housing measures.

“The move will cut unnecessary red tape and costs for British producers while also strengthening supply chain and maintaining consumer confidence.”

It does mean that shoppers of a conscientious persuasion will have no way to tell when a chicken is being kept in a cage despite ‘free range’ labelling, although the measure is for the hen’s own good to prevent catching bird flu.

Daniel Zeichner, Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs said: “We understand the pressures facing the egg producing sector and the crippling impact that avian influenza outbreaks can have on their businesses. Removing the need to change labels on eggs and packaging will help them keep costs down and remain competitive.

“This Government will restore stability and confidence in the sector introducing a new deal for farmers to boost rural economic growth and strengthen food security alongside nature’s recovery.”