Over a decade after pledging to transition its entire egg supply to cage-free by 2025, Kroger has revised its target, extending the timeline and lowering its goal. The Cincinnati-based grocery chain now aims to achieve 70% cage-free eggs by 2030.
Kroger first announced its 100% cage-free commitment in March 2016, citing growing consumer demand for eggs from hens housed without cages. At the time, about 85% of eggs sold at Kroger came from caged hens. However, a 2022 corporate report revealed a significant change, quietly adjusting the company’s original promise. The report acknowledged that Kroger did not expect to meet the 2025 goal and set a new target of reaching 70% cage-free eggs by 2030, factoring in “industry progress” and consumer price sensitivity.
Animal welfare advocates have criticized the revised timeline and lower benchmark. Kent Stein, a corporate policy specialist for farm animal protection at Humane World for Animals, described Kroger’s retreat as “unacceptable,” contrasting it with other retailers like Amazon, Costco, Target, CVS, Walgreens, and Trader Joe’s, many of which have either already met their cage-free goals or have firm plans to do so in the near future.
Stein also challenged Kroger’s rationale regarding cost concerns, pointing out that “hundreds of other cost-conscious companies” have completed the transition despite similar challenges. He characterized Kroger’s delayed progress as a failure to honor a decade-old promise to customers and hens alike.
Kroger’s Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reports chart the company’s cage-free egg progress over recent years. From 2016 through 2021, Kroger maintained that it was "on track" toward its original goal. However, the share of cage-free eggs by revenue has fluctuated. In 2022, cage-free eggs accounted for roughly 32% of total egg sales—a decline from nearly 46% in 2021. The proportion rebounded to nearly 52% in 2023 and climbed to 56% in 2024, with the latter figure exceeding Kroger’s revised interim target. Meanwhile, the share of cage-free egg units increased steadily from about 33% in 2022 to 43% in 2024.
Kroger attributed the transition’s financial burden to an anticipated $45 million investment to support the move through 2030. When questioned about the company’s changing commitments, Kroger declined to provide further comment.
In addition to its egg supply goals, Kroger has also extended the timeline for phasing out single-use plastic bags, another promise originally set for 2025. The grocery chain cited factors such as the costs of all-paper bags, customer feedback, legislative delays, and disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although no new target date has been announced, Kroger reported that by the end of 2024, more than 700 stores had stopped providing single-use plastic bags, switching instead to paper or reusable alternatives in accordance with local regulations. As of early 2025, no Kroger locations in Kentucky had completed this transition.