Ben & Jerry’s ice cream ended its business relationship with a Minnesota-based egg producer last week, after a blistering report from the U.S. Humane Society that said the hens producing those eggs were
mistreated – kept in unsanitary and inhumane conditions.
The hens were caged, and in severing its ties with Michael Foods, Ben & Jerry’s said it would in the future only get eggs that are certified buy the UEP – the United Egg Producers.
But what exactly does that mean? For one thing, it doesn’t mean that the eggs come from cage-free, or so-called “free range hens.”
Journalist Matt McKinney of the Minneapolis Star Tribune has written about Michael Foods. He spoke with Mitch Wertlieb and helped clarify the chicken and egg issues.