NEW YORK —Walgreen has accelerated progress toward its commitment to sell 100% cage-free shell and liquid eggs by 2025 to year-end 2022. This new public commitment accelerates the timeline for cage-free eggs across its 9,102 US retail locations by three years, so hens in the supply chains of its stores will no longer suffer in cages.

“We applaud Walgreens for its decision to switch to cage-free eggs much sooner than initially planned. This step will reduce the suffering of countless egg-laying hens,” says Vicky Bond, president of The Humane League. “Socially responsible companies like Walgreens will no longer source eggs from hens kept in cruel battery cages, and we hope that companies like Rite Aid will follow the lead of Walgreens and CVS, which also pledged to sell only cage-free eggs by the end of this year.”

This commitment comes after weeks of pressure from The Humane League and consumer outcry for Walgreens to fulfill its cage-free commitment. The Humane League focuses on changing how the world’s biggest companies treat animals by setting new standards for corporate animal welfare policies. This work has been instrumental in securing many of the more than 500 cage-free pledges made by North American food companies.