Jaipur, 21 September: People for Animals Public Policy Foundation and Global Food Partners, in collaboration with Hotel Clarks Amer in Jaipur, hosted a Cage-Free Egg Meet. It successfully brought together around 50 attendees, including key representatives from international hospitality chains and cage-free egg producers across India. The event emphasised the need for the hospitality sector to prioritise sustainability and animal welfare, particularly through the use of cage-free eggs.
Secretary
of Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, Ravi Jain, highlighted the urgency
of eliminating cruelty from food supply chains and urged hotels to
transition to cage-free eggs. He said, “It has become imperative for
hotels to include animal welfare and build ethical practices and
sustainability into their supply chains. Like us, farm animals are
sentient beings who feel pain and suffering. They must not be subject to
unnecessary cruelty and violence.”
Managing
Director of Hotel Clarks Amer, Apurv Kumar, reinforced the importance
of integrating animal welfare into hotel operations. He added, “Change
begins with oneself," sharing that he has been vegan for over a decade
for ethical reasons and is committed to incorporating welfare and
ethical principles into his business practices.
In
attendance were representatives from about 15 leading hotels, such as
Hyatt Regency, Marriott Hotels, Hilton Hotels, Le Meridien Hotels,
Radisson Hotels, BWH Hotels, ITC Rajputana, and Novotel Jaipur. The
event highlighted the growing role of hotels in driving ethical
consumption by integrating humane sourcing practices into their supply
chains.
The event
featured keynote speeches from experts, including Trustee of the People
for Animals Public Policy Foundation, Gauri Maulekhi, an animal welfare
organisation that helps corporations incorporate animal welfare into
their sourcing policies; Lead, Corporate Engagement, Global Food
Partners, Crysel Garg, a Singapore-based consultancy that aids companies
in achieving cage-free goals; and the Central Avian Research Institute,
under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Government of India,
which provides training to corporate suppliers in cage-free egg
production.
Gauri
Maulekhi said, “It is heartening to see thousands of corporations
worldwide prioritising animal welfare and ethical food supply practices
by transitioning to sourcing cage-free eggs. Indian consumers
increasingly want humanely-sourced food and hospitality companies must
cater to this demand.”
The
conference underscored the critical partnership between the hospitality
sector and cage-free egg producers in meeting the growing demand for
humane and sustainable food sources. Vice President of Operations, BWH
Hotels, Vijay Bajpai said, “India has been a challenging market for us
as there is limited supply of cage-free eggs. This event brought
institutional consumers and cage-free producers under one roof and
enabled us to find the right partners to supply eggs to our properties
nationwide. We believe we will now be able to meet our 2025 deadline.”