Yet while we merrily devour mouthwatering canapés, there are millions of hens out of sight, out of mind, who have suffered for our snack, and we aren’t talking about the birds you are already familiar with.

Quail have been diligently laying beautiful, tiny, mottled eggs which are typically added to luxury meals and canapés especially during the festive season, yet the life they endure is often anything but luxurious, so we are here to shine the spotlight on them this Christmas.

Why quail?

Female quail are known as hens, and we want to share with our compassionate supporters the conditions some are kept in because we know you will join us in calling for better.

So little is known about laying quail in the UK, but as always we want to inform all consumers about how their lives are in your hands. Here are the facts we know:

The current position

At the moment there is little to no legislation specifically protecting the way farmed quail are kept in the UK. They are covered by general animal welfare laws including the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and the Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2007 but as a species, quail are not mentioned under either of these.

Many quail are kept in barren battery cages like the ones banned for laying chickens in 2012. Often, large numbers of birds are sometimes housed in shipping containers or outbuildings, offering limited movement and with no opportunity to exhibit natural behaviours like foraging, nesting and sleeping in grass. When in danger, a quail’s natural instinct is to fly upwards at speed – something which cannot be done in a cage and can lead to injury when the birds hit the top of the cage headfirst.

However, there are, of course, some wonderful UK producers who focus on high welfare and keep their birds in ‘free to fly’ aviaries. Whilst not a legal term and therefore having no legal definition, generally it is assumed quail in ‘free to fly’ settings have space to fly or flutter within a netted space so they can display natural behaviours but not escape or injure themselves. Some indoor systems go a step further and allow quail more space, natural light and straw bales for enrichment.

What's been done so far?

The Scottish Government issued a Call for Evidence consultation in 2023/24 around phasing out the use of cages for gamebird and quail sectors, including for egg and meat production. The consultation suggests that legislation or regulation may shift towards requiring more outdoor welfare-friendly systems. However, there has been no update on the outcome of the Scottish initiative and no such move has been made in England or Wales. And quail continue to silently endure.

A further report issued by the European Food Safety Authority in May 2023 looked at the welfare implications of keeping quail in cages, specifically around eight key issues, including restriction of movement, group stress and inability to perform comfort behaviour.

It concluded that “currently used husbandry systems as described in the scientific opinion and called cages (individual, couple or collective) should be avoided as they lead to a high risk of occurrence of the welfare consequences [listed].”

In 2021 Compassion in World Farming’s End the Cage Age campaign was debated by the European Commission with it committing to table “by the end of 2023, a legislative proposal to phase out, and finally prohibit, the use of cage systems for all animals mentioned in the Initiative.” The report specifically mentioned quail. Yet quail still remain in cages across Europe and the wider world.

More recently on 19 February 2025, the Commission’s Vision for Agriculture and Food was adopted, and states that: ‘the Commission will closely exchange with farmers, the food chain and civil society and on that basis present proposals on the revision of the existing animal welfare legislation, including its commitment to phase out cages. This revision will be based on the latest scientific evidence and take into account the socio-economic impact on farmers and the agri-food chain, providing support and appropriate, species-specific transition periods and pathways.’

While this may sound like a promise, and many charities have attempted to help quail, billions still endure a life we would not wish for them in any what whatsoever.

What can you do?

Quite simply, talk about them. If you spot a quail egg on the menu this Christmas, ask where it came from. Has the bird who laid it been kept in free to fly conditions? Spread the word among your friends, family and colleagues that quail are potentially enduring a miserable existence for their luxury mouthful and encourage them to support those farmers who lead the way in welfare.

Our shopping basket is so powerful - pick up quail eggs which clearly state they are ‘free to fly’; both Marks & Spencer and Waitrose fly the flag for the UK in terms of welfare and we applaud them for it.

Collectively, we have achieved so much over the past two decades to help laying chickens, and that is largely down to a shift in consumer behaviour. We believe change happens from the bottom up and if the demand for higher welfare quail eggs becomes the norm then, eventually, so too will it become reality for the beautiful tiny birds laying them.

This is only the beginning of our campaign to improve life for laying quail in the UK and, eventually, beyond our shores, and so we would love to hear your thoughts and experiences via [email protected]. And if you happen to know of a producer doing it right, we want to know so we can thank them.

Billions of quail – their lives in our hands.