Battery cages are spreading
Northern Nigeria's layer sector is growing fast, and a rising share of hens are kept in battery cages — among the most painful conditions in animal agriculture.
Northern Nigeria · Farmed Animal Welfare
A future where no hen lives her life in a cage.
SAWAI is building Northern Nigeria's first farmed animal advocacy movement. We work with the institutions that buy eggs at scale — starting with universities — so that producers have a commercial reason to move cage-free.
4
Northern universities mapped in Year 1
2–3
Written cage-free commitments targeted
1st
Institutional cage-free demand in the region
3
States mapped: Kano · Katsina · Plateau
The Problem
A fast-growing industry — and almost no one speaking up for the birds inside it.
No advocacy presence
Farmed animal welfare has almost no advocacy presence in the region. There is no organised voice asking what happens to the birds behind the eggs.
Buyers hold the key
Producers respond to buyers, not to awareness alone — and no institutional buyer in the North has yet asked for higher-welfare eggs.
Theory of Change
Change the buyer, and the cage stops paying.
We create demand for cage-free eggs from institutions that buy at scale — starting with universities. Student and staff networks already embedded on campus give us access to procurement decision-makers that outside groups simply lack.
The problem we're solving
Northern Nigeria's layer sector is growing fast, and a rising share of hens are kept in battery cages. Chronic confinement prevents hens from performing basic natural behaviours.
Farmed animal welfare has almost no advocacy presence in the region. Producers respond to buyers, not to awareness alone — and no institutional buyer in the North has yet asked for higher-welfare eggs.
Our approach
We create demand for cage-free eggs from institutions that buy at scale — starting with universities — so that producers have a commercial reason to transition.
We work through student and staff networks already embedded on campus, which gives us access to procurement decision-makers that outside groups lack.
1
Campus networks mobilise
Students, catering staff and procurement officers build support from inside.
2
Universities commit
Administrations sign written cage-free egg procurement commitments.
3
Producers transition
Suppliers to those universities begin moving to cage-free production.
4
The model replicates
Hospitals, hotels and government canteens follow the same playbook.
Our Strategy
Two fronts: the cage, and the journey.
Battery Cage Phase-Out
Most hens in Northern Nigeria's growing layer sector are confined in battery cages, unable to perform basic natural behaviours. Producers switch when buyers demand it — so SAWAI creates that demand.
Through our student and staff network across Northern universities, we work with procurement officers and administrations to secure written cage-free egg commitments, and we map the regional layer sector to connect committed buyers with producers able to supply them.
Universities are our starting point. Hospitals, hotels and government canteens are next.
Transport & Slaughter Welfare
Livestock crossing the Sahel endure multi-day transport under extreme heat and are handled without basic welfare protocols. Once our cage-free pilot has shown results, we intend to develop practical handling and transit standards with regional livestock markets.
- Improved loading density and thermal protection guidelines during transit.
- Practical humane handling standards at regional livestock markets.
- Capacity building for abattoir personnel.
Year One
What we're doing, and what it should produce.
Four activities. A defined set of outputs. And a results chain we're prepared to be measured against.
01
Map egg procurement at 4 Northern universities — who buys, volumes, suppliers.
02
Run campus workshops to build support among students, catering staff and procurement officers.
03
Negotiate written cage-free procurement commitments with university administrations.
04
Map the Kano–Katsina–Plateau layer sector to identify producers able to supply cage-free eggs.
Outputs
- 2–3 signed university cage-free commitments
- A public sector map of the regional layer industry
- Trained campus leads on each participating campus
Outcomes
- Institutional demand for cage-free eggs exists in Northern Nigeria for the first time
- Producers supplying these universities begin transitioning
- A replicable model for hospitals, hotels and government canteens
Long-term impact
- A growing share of Northern Nigerian hens live cage-free
- The region develops its own farmed animal advocacy movement
The end goal isn't a signed letter. It's a region where the cage is no longer the default — and where the people who changed that live here.
Accountability
Assumptions we're testing.
We don't claim these are certainties. They're hypotheses — and we'll report honestly on each of them.
Universities will commit if asked by their own community.
We're testing whether pressure from students, staff and caterers moves procurement.
Cage-free supply can be found or developed.
We're testing whether regional producers can realistically meet cage-free demand.
Commitments are honoured.
We're testing whether signed commitments translate into what actually gets bought.
We will report honestly on each assumption — including when the evidence says we were wrong. Transparency is part of the method, not a footnote to it.
Future Directions
What comes after the pilot.
01
Prove the model
Secure and verify university cage-free commitments in Year One.
02
Extend to new buyers
Take the playbook to hospitals, hotels and government canteens.
03
Ruminant transport & slaughter
Develop practical handling and transit standards with regional livestock markets along the Sahelian corridor.
Help us make the cage obsolete in Northern Nigeria.
We're looking for university partners, funders, producers and advocates who want to build this movement with us. If you buy eggs at scale — or you want to help us reach the people who do — we'd like to hear from you.
Email
info@sahelawai.org
Focus region
Northern Nigeria — Kano · Katsina · Plateau
Working on
Battery cage phase-out & institutional cage-free procurement