Hoteles ESTELAR announced its commitment to switch to a 100 percent cage-free egg (liquid and shell) supply chain by 2022. During the coming years, the company will work with its egg suppliers and Humane Society International, one of the world’s largest animal protection organizations, to complete the transition.

The transition period in which the egg suppliers will work on the adaptation of their farms to guarantee animal welfare for their hens will take five years. Therefore, ESTELAR will be able to employ cage-free systems by 2022.

Cage-free systems generally offer higher animal welfare compared to caged systems. Cage-free hens are able to walk, stretch their wings and lay their eggs in nests, in addition to other important natural behaviors that are all denied to animals when they are confined for their whole lives in cages.

Alejandro Blanco, director of operations at Hoteles ESTELAR, stated: “At Hoteles Estelar it is a priority to be up to date with the trends in Colombia and the rest of the world, and to also meet tour guests’ demands. As a socially responsible company, we want to ensure higher welfare in our supply chain and offer our clients higher quality products.”

Elissa Lane, deputy director of HSI Farm Animals, stated: “We congratulate Hoteles Estelar for being a leader in this corporate social responsibility initiative that will improve the lives of thousands of animals in Colombia. This corporate decision is a great example for the rest of the industry in Colombia and Latin America. We invite other companies from the hotel industry to join this movement.”

More than 30 companies have joined this cage-free egg initiative in Colombia and Latin America, including Grupo Bimbo, Alsea, Arcos Dorados, Toks, Burger King, Compass Group, Intercontinental Hotels Group, Accor Hotels, Sodexo, Hilton Worldwide, International Meal Company and Unilever.

Media contacts:

Hoteles ESTELAR: Nubia Gamboa S., nubiagamboa@dinamica.co.in

HSI: Laura Agudelo, lafripreseria@gmail.com