TASMANIAN farming and animal groups have butted heads over the state government's decision to lift a ban on caged eggs in public hospitals, prisons and schools.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
While the RSPCA condemned the move, the Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association (TFGA) has ``applauded'' the government.
``In effect, that plan would have handed the Tasmanian egg market over to interstate suppliers because they could still have imported caged eggs here. The ban was to be on production not consumption,'' TFGA chief executive Jan Davis said.
``So the new government's decision to remove the ban on government agencies buying caged eggs makes good sense.''
Tasmanian RSPCA general manager, Peter West, however, called the move ``a step backwards''.
``They don't need to do this. It's something that had been accepted,'' he said.
``By doing this, it sends a message out of instability out to the community. They're basically saying we'll change this law because we can.''
More to come in tomorrow's The Examiner