Today we’ve launched Our Voices, as part of the End the Cage Age campaign, urging supporters to speak up for animals to ensure the European Commission delivers the long-overdue proposals to ban cages for all species in 2026.

In 2019, more than 1.4 million people signed the End the Cage Age European Citizens’ Initiative in support of the ban. Yet, despite a European Commission commitment in 2021 to implement it, it has failed to deliver. That’s why we need to unite in leveraging the most powerful tool we have: the voices of the millions of Europeans who dared to speak up for animals and a future free from the cruelty of cages.

We’re asking our supporters to lend their own voices to a collective campaign video so that we can send a clear message to the European Commission that we demand proposals to ban cages for all animals in 2026.

Unforgettable broken promises 

The Commission’s delays have prolonged the suffering of millions of sentient animals who continue to suffer in cages across Europe. Every year, nearly 300 million sows, laying hens, rabbits, quail, geese and calves are confined in cages – unable to move freely and live a life worth living.

European citizens are aware of this immense suffering and, according to the Eurobarometer 2023, an overwhelming 89% of them believe that animals should not be farmed in individual cages. 

For the welfare of farmed animals, the wellbeing of the planet and the health of democracy, the Commission simply cannot keep ignoring  the voices of the majority of Europeans. 

The next year will be key to a cage-free future 

In December 2024, Animal Welfare Commissioner Oliver Várhelyi announced the Commission would start delivering the promised animal welfare reform in Autumn 2026, with the proposals to ban caged farming a priority. 

With little over a year to go before the rollout of the first proposals to improve the EU’s animal welfare rules, the next few months will be key to ensuring the Commission delivers ambitious, comprehensive and future-proof legislation that protect all species.

Vinciane Patelou, our Head of EU, said:

Our Voices will amplify the voices of those who cannot speak up for themselves – the millions of farmed animals who continue to suffer, trapped in cages across Europe. Together we will leave the European Commission in no doubt that European citizens demand a ban on cages for all species in 2026 and that any further delays are totally unacceptable.

We call on our supporters to film themselves saying “Hear my voice – End the Cage Age” and to send us the recording. Together, we will create a powerful compilation with a message the European Commission will not be able to ignore. They must End the Cage Age.

Our Voices unite to demand cage ban

Our Voices unite to demand cage ban  