Harris Teeter will transition to cage-free eggs by 2025 | Charlotte Observer

The parent company of Matthews-based Harris Teeter is the latest grocer to promise it will work to transition all of its eggs to cage-free.

Kroger, the largest grocery chain in the U.S., said in a statement this week that it will move to a 100 percent cage-free egg supply by 2025 at its family of stores.

In 2015, 15 percent of the eggs Kroger said it sold were cage-free. The grocer said it will continue to report its cage-free egg growth in its annual sustainability report.

Kroger also said it will continue to listen to customers and stakeholders on important policy issues. Earlier this week, an activist group called The Humane League launched a new campaign to convince Kroger to change its egg-sourcing policies, Supermarket News reported.

The group said it applauded Kroger’s efforts, and that they will have a “huge impact on the future of animal welfare in the U.S.”

Also earlier this week, the parent company of Salisbury-based Food Lion said it would begin transitioning to a 100 percent cage-free egg supply by 2025.

Cincinnati-based Kroger bought Harris Teeter in 2014. Harris Teeter is the Charlotte area’s No. 2 grocery chain by market share.