The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has started proceedings against another local egg supplier – Darling Downs Fresh Eggs – over the marketing of free-range eggs.
Darling Downs supplied eggs labelled free range that were produced by hens “continuously confined to barns” and that “never had access to the outdoors”, the ACCC claimed.
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Darling Downs supplied eggs it represented were free range under its own Mountain Range label and under the Drakes Home Brand Free Range label. Darling Downs Fresh Range Eggs also supplied eggs it represented were free range to other producers who used them to supplement their own free range egg supply, the watchdog added.
“Consumers are entitled to rely on free range claims made by producers,” ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said. “The ACCC considers free range eggs to mean that the laying hens can and do go outside and move around freely on an open range on most days. The ACCC considers that the alleged misrepresentations in this case are particularly serious, because it is the ACCC’s case that the Darling Downs Fresh Eggs hens were never given outdoor access,” Sims said.
A directions hearing will take place on 5 February.
Darling Downs had not responded to a request for comment at the time of writing.
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By GlobalDataLast week, the ACCC started proceedings against egg processor Derodi & Holland Farms, alleging the use of the term free range on some of its brands is “false and misleading”.
