A CAMPAIGN to win better conditions for chickens being reared across Europe has been launched by a north west MEP.

Chris Davies, a former Oldham MP, is calling on Brussels to take the lead in giving birds which live in intensive factory conditions a more comfortable 'free range' life.

TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall recently highlighted the way chickens are reared in a series of Channel 4 programmes but Mr Davies says the European Union has to take up the battle.

He said: "Battery cages have long been seen as one of the most inhumane aspects of factory farming and it is high time we moved towards reducing animal suffering."

EU agriculture ministers last year agreed a new law to improve conditions of the sheds in which the chickens are housed and to limit cruel practices such as beak trimming.

British birds
By Mr Davies says this will mean little improvement for British birds and he is calling for a tougher response, including clearer labels on chickens in supermarkets showing how they have been reared.

Chicken is the cheapest and most popular meat sold in Britain, accounting for about 40 per cent of all meat bought. Broiler birds - reared without light and with little space to provide consumers with cheap meat - can sell for as little as £2.50 in supermarkets.

The MEP says the sheds they are reared in have low light to maximise growth but can cause stress and leg disorders.

He said: "Standards need to be brought up across the EU to prevent trading cheaply at the cost of animal welfare."

Celebrity chef Hugh recently led an experiment in at his Axminster smallholding where he tried to raise awareness of the plight of the broiler chicken.

He tried to make the Devon town the first 'free range' community in the country by encouraging shoppers and fast food outlets to buy 'ethically produced' chicken.