Poultry Welfare

Burnbrae Farms has been a Canadian and family-owned farm since 1893 and has been producing shell eggs and innovative egg products for more than 70 years.   We have grown from a single family farm to a thriving agribusiness with farms across the country. We process shell eggs from our family farm and numerous local egg farmers who ship their eggs to our grading station. These eggs and egg products are processed for many of the private- and brand-name labels that you see in your local grocery store. On our family farms, we aspire to achieve the highest standards in food safety, environmental protection, work place safety and animal welfare. To view our Mission, Vision and Values please click here .

Animal Welfare Policy

Our success is dependent upon the good care and attention which we provide to our hens. We are committed to treating all of our hens in a safe and humane manner.  We learned very early that a healthy hen is a high-quality producing hen. This is not only good business for us at Burnbrae Farms but a moral commitment.  When making decisions around the care we provide to our laying hens, we have always followed and passed the Egg Farmers of Canada's Animal Care Program which is based on the Canadian Recommended Code of Practice for Care and Handling of Pullets, Layers and Spent Fowl (Code of Practice).  This Code of Practice applies to conventional and free run housing systems.  It was developed by veterinarians, scientists, the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, egg farmers and egg processors.  Click here to e-mail us for a copy of our Animal Welfare Policy .

Employee Training

Burnbrae Farms poultry farm employees are trained by industry experts educated and experienced in handling poultry.  They are required to annually review and sign our Poultry Farm Employee Code of Conduct and our policy relating to the reporting of any issues concerning the handling of our hens to reinforce the importance of these policies. Our employees are encouraged to report any questionable issues concerning animal welfare on our farm to senior management or directly to a member of the family. The care of our hens is a top priority for us, our farm operators and the farmers that ship to us. If animals are treated inappropriately or with disregard, farmers cannot and will not stand idly by. Click here for more information.

Animal Welfare Taskforce

Burnbrae Farms believes strongly that it is our husbandry practices that determine the welfare of the hens on our farms. We take the responsibility of looking after our hens very seriously, ensuring their health, well-being and comfort while they are in our care. We continually invest in research including an internal advisory team of industry experts – our Animal Welfare Taskforce - who work closely with government agencies, industry partners, agricultural universities and the research community to ensure that we are kept informed and implement new practices to enhance the welfare of our layer hens. Burnbrae Farms is further showing its commitment through sponsorship of a Poultry Research Professorship at the University of Guelph. This position is a key role on a team of animal welfare researchers with a mandate to conduct poultry research and train students in animal welfare. We make every effort to balance the needs of both our hens and our consumers. Our customers require high quality nutritious food that is both safe and affordable.  Our hens need comfortable housing as well as a wholesome and clean feed and water supply in order to lay eggs.  Overall, we strive to offer good care to our hens, while at the same time; provide our consumers with a variety of products that meet their diverse health, social and financial requirements.