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Animal Welfare (Protection of Animals) (Raising and Keeping of Laying Hens in Coops for Agricultural Purposes) Regulations, 5782-2022

תקנות צער בעלי חיים (הגנה על בעלי חיים) (גידול תרנגולות מטילות והחזקתן בלולים לצרכים חקלאיים), תשפ"ב-2022

Published: 2022-06-30Consolidated Hebrew text as of 2025-07-28 · Last amended 2022-07-21
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Unofficial English translation — for reference only. It may contain errors or omissions and cannot be relied on as a legal text. Only the Hebrew text published in Reshumot is legally binding.More

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The Hebrew text as published in Reshumot (ספר החוקים) and on the Knesset website is the sole authoritative and legally binding version. In any discrepancy, the Hebrew text prevails.

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By virtue of my authority under section 19 of the Animal Welfare (Protection of Animals) Law, 5754-1994, having regard to agricultural needs and with the approval of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee of the Knesset, I hereby make the following Regulations:

Chapter I: Interpretation

Definitions§

1.

In these Regulations –

"person in charge" – as defined in paragraph (1) of regulation 4;

"exceptional event", in a coop – one of the following:

(1)mortality of laying hens at a rate exceeding 0.25% in one day;
(2)a decline in egg-laying at a rate exceeding 10% in one day or 5% over three consecutive days, compared to the average daily laying rate in the week preceding that date;

"coop owner" – a person entitled to receive consideration for the sale of laying hens or the marketing of their produce, provided that such sale or marketing is made directly from the coop;

"nipple drinker" – a vessel for supplying drinking water to laying hens by means of a nipple drip nozzle;

"commencement date" – as defined in regulation 21(a);

"cup drinker" – a vessel for supplying drinking water to laying hens by means of a cup-shaped storage container;

"coop" – a rearing coop or a laying coop;

"rearing coop" – a place in which laying hens are kept until their transfer to a laying coop;

"laying coop" – a place in which laying hens are kept for the purpose of laying eggs for marketing for consumption;

"caged coop" – a coop in which the laying hens therein are kept in cages located within a structure;

"cage-free coop" – a coop whose total area exceeds ten square metres, whose height is at least two metres and in which the laying hens therein are not kept in cages and have the possibility of free movement throughout the coop area at all times; if the total area of the usable area exceeds the area permitted for the keeping of 2,000 laying hens under regulation 6, the coop may be divided into compartments, provided that the area of the usable area in each compartment shall be the area permitted for the keeping of at least 1,000 laying hens under that regulation;

"existing coop" – one of the following:

(1)a coop that was stocked with laying hens before the commencement date;
(2)a coop in respect of which a building permit was granted on the eve of the commencement date and the pouring of its floor was completed, provided that all of the following apply to it:
(a)the coop complies with the Business Licensing (Conditions for the Licensing of Poultry Farms and Coops) Regulations, 5741-1981;
(b)the coop was stocked with laying hens within one year of the commencement date;
(c)with respect to a caged coop – without derogating from the conditions set out in this paragraph, the coop owner holds confirmation that the cages were ordered and that payment was made or a commitment to pay was undertaken for them on the eve of the commencement date;

"poultry farming instructor" – an instructor employed in the extension and professional service of the Ministry, in the field of poultry;

"perch" – a horizontal rod installed in a coop on which laying hens can stand;

"drinking water" – as defined in section 52a of the Public Health Ordinance, 1940, which meets the sanitary conditions prescribed under Part 5-A of that Ordinance;

"employee" – whether paid or unpaid;

"Animal Diseases Ordinance" – the Animal Diseases Ordinance [New Version], 5745-1985;

"nest box" – a shelter used by laying hens for laying eggs;

"government veterinarian" – a veterinarian employed by the Ministry who has been appointed as a government veterinarian under the Animal Diseases Ordinance;

"litter" – a friable material placed on the floor of a coop that enables laying hens to dust-bathe in it;

"usable area", in a coop – an area free of installations, including nest boxes, that is accessible to a laying hen and whose dimensions are as set out below:

(1)its width is at least 30 centimetres;
(2)the slope of its floor does not exceed 14% or 8 degrees;
(3)its height, in a laying coop – at least 45 centimetres, and in a rearing coop – at least 39 centimetres;

"marketing" – the transfer of table eggs to another person for commercial purposes, whether for consideration or without consideration;

"laying hen" – a hen (Gallus gallus) from the age of 48 hours that is raised or kept for the purpose of laying eggs for marketing for consumption.

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Chapter II: Purposes

Purpose of the Regulations§

2.

The purpose of these Regulations is to prescribe mandatory conditions for the keeping of laying hens in coops and for the improvement of their welfare, having regard to agricultural needs and to health, environmental and economic aspects.

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Chapter III: Establishment of a Coop, its Operation and the Raising of Laying Hens therein

Section A: Establishment of a Coop and its Stocking

Establishment of a Coop and Keeping of Laying Hens therein§
3.
(a)No person shall establish a coop unless it is a cage-free coop; for this purpose, "establishment" – includes the conversion of an existing structure into a coop.
(b)No person shall keep laying hens in a coop unless it is a cage-free coop.
Employees in a Coop§
4.

A coop owner shall not operate a coop or keep laying hens therein unless the following conditions are met:

(1)the coop owner has appointed as the person in charge of coop operations one or more employees who possess the knowledge required for the keeping of and care for laying hens, including with respect to their feeding, the environmental conditions they require, and the identification of diseases, injuries and exceptional events; if no person in charge has been appointed as aforesaid, the coop owner shall be deemed to be the person in charge of the coop under these Regulations;
(2)the number of employees in the coop is sufficient for the fulfilment of the provisions of these Regulations.
Stocking of a Coop§
5.

A coop owner shall not re-stock a coop, after the coop has been vacated of all the laying hens therein, unless the following conditions are met:

(1)food, water, droppings and other waste have been removed from the coop;
(2)the coop and the equipment therein, including water and food vessels, have been cleaned and disinfected; such disinfection shall be carried out while the coop is empty of laying hens, using an appropriate preparation and in accordance with the instructions for use on the label of the preparation; nothing in the foregoing shall derogate from the provisions of the Animal Diseases (Disinfection, Cleaning and Pest Control Preparations) Regulations, 5742-1982, if those Regulations apply to that preparation;
(3)the age difference between the laying hens in the coop does not exceed ten days, and if the coop is divided into compartments between which the laying hens have no possibility of passage – the age difference between the laying hens in each compartment does not exceed ten days;
(4)the structure of the coop and the equipment therein, including automatic systems, backup systems and monitoring and alert systems as referred to in Section B, if any, have been inspected and found to be in working order;
(5)the litter has been replaced with new, clean litter;
(6)with respect to a laying coop that has several tiers – in the period preceding the stocking of the coop, the laying hens were reared in a rearing coop that has tiers, ladders and perches.
Density in a Coop§
6.
(a)A coop owner shall not keep in a rearing coop chicks with a cumulative weight exceeding 28 kilograms per square metre; for the purposes of this regulation, only the usable area shall be taken into account.
(b)A coop owner shall not keep laying hens in a laying coop unless the following conditions with respect to density in the coop are met:
(1)the average area of the usable area is at least 1,111 square centimetres per laying hen;
(2)the average litter area, out of the usable area, is at least 250 square centimetres per laying hen.

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Section B: Infrastructure and Equipment

Infrastructure and Equipment in a Coop§
7.
(a)A coop owner shall not keep laying hens in a coop unless all of the following are present in the coop:
(1)natural ventilation or an artificial ventilation system, enabling compliance with gas levels not exceeding those set out below, at a height of up to 20 centimetres above the level of the litter:
(a)ammonia (NH3) – 20 parts per million (ppm);
(b)carbon dioxide (CO2) – 3,000 parts per million (ppm);
(2)in a coop that is artificially ventilated – an emergency generator that operates automatically in the event of a power failure;
(3)natural lighting or an artificial lighting system that illuminates all parts of the coop in which laying hens are present;
(4)in a coop that is artificially lit –
(a)a system that enables the adjustment of lighting to a 24-hour cycle comprising a light period and a dark period;
(b)a system that enables a transition to the dark period by dimming or gradually reducing the light, over a period of at least twenty minutes;
(5)systems for the supply of drinking water and food, and drinking installations and feeders that are shaded and protected from sunlight at all times; if water is supplied from a tank positioned outside the coop – the tank is roofed, shaded and protected from sunlight at all times, or it is painted white and coated with thermal insulation material;
(6)a reserve water tank whose capacity is sufficient for all the laying hens for 24 hours and whose volume is at least one cubic metre per 4,000 laying hens;
(7)food suitable for the laying hens kept in the coop according to the labelling label as defined in the Animal Feed Supervision (Labelling of Animal Feed) Regulations, 5778-2018;
(8)monitoring and alert systems for the person in charge with respect to each of the following:
(a)temperature; the system shall record the temperature within the coop structure once per hour;
(b)ammonia and carbon dioxide levels; if the level has exceeded that prescribed in paragraph (1) – the system shall immediately alert the coop owner as well;
(c)if the lighting in the coop is artificial – the duration of its operation;
(d)food and drinking water consumption;
(9)if automatic systems for ventilation or for the supply of food and water are installed and operating in the coop – backup systems that will operate in the event of a malfunction in those systems.
(b)A coop owner shall not keep laying hens in a coop in which the surfaces for the standing of the laying hens have gaps, unless those surfaces are constructed and installed in a manner that supports each of the three front toes of the laying hen and enables the laying hen to stand such that the soles of its feet rest on the surface without its toes or claws becoming caught in the gaps.
(c)A coop owner shall not keep laying hens in a coop if the coop structure or the equipment therein has sharp protrusions that may injure the laying hens.
(d)A coop owner shall not keep laying hens in a coop that has several tiers one above the other, unless all of the following are met:
(1)the number of tiers does not exceed four; the floor of the coop shall be counted among the tiers;
(2)the laying hens are able to move freely between the tiers at all times;
(3)the tiers are constructed in a manner that prevents the seeping of excreta from one tier to another;
(4)between the tiers there are ladders with a slope that enables the laying hens to pass from one tier to another;
(5)above one third of the usable area there shall be an open space of at least two metres in height.
Infrastructure and Equipment in a Rearing Coop§
8.

A coop owner shall not keep laying hens in a rearing coop unless all of the following are present in the coop, in addition to what is stated in regulation 7:

(1)a temperature regulation system enabling the maintenance of a temperature within the range of 15 to 37 degrees Celsius;
(2)drinking installations and feeders as referred to in regulation 7(a)(5), in a number, location, shape and dimensions required to enable the laying hens in the coop free access to drinking water and food at all times, and adapted to their size;
(3)litter covering the floor of the coop; however, in a rearing coop that has several tiers, the provision of this paragraph shall apply from the stage at which the chicks are permitted to come down to the floor or upon their reaching the age of five weeks, whichever is the earlier;
(4)perches whose diameter is appropriate to the age of the laying hens and whose total length is sufficient for all the laying hens to stand on them at the same time.
Infrastructure and Equipment in a Laying Coop§
9.
(a)A coop owner shall not keep laying hens in a laying coop unless all of the following are present in the coop, in addition to what is stated in regulation 7:
(1)a cooling system for the coop;
(2)drinking installations as referred to in regulation 7(a)(5), of one or more of the following types:
(a)straight troughs whose total length, in centimetres, is not less than the number obtained by multiplying the number of laying hens in the coop by two and a half;
(b)circular troughs whose outer circumference, in centimetres, is not less than the number of laying hens in the coop;
(c)nipple drinkers or cup drinkers whose number is not less than one nipple drinker or cup drinker per ten laying hens, provided that each laying hen has access to more than one nipple drinker or cup drinker;
(3)feeders as referred to in regulation 7(a)(5), of one or more of the following types:
(a)straight feeders whose total length, in centimetres, is not less than the number obtained by multiplying the number of laying hens in the coop by ten;
(b)circular feeders whose outer circumference, in centimetres, is not less than the number obtained by multiplying the number of laying hens in the coop by four;
(4)nest boxes in a number not less than one nest box per seven laying hens in the coop, or group nest boxes with an area of at least one square metre per 120 laying hens; if the floor of the nest box is made of concrete or metal – a substrate made of thermally insulating material that can be disinfected or replaced shall be placed on it;
(5)litter covering the floor of the coop as referred to in regulation 6(b)(2);
(6)perches on which the laying hens can stand and in respect of which all of the following apply:
(a)their width is not less than two centimetres and their total length, in centimetres, is not less than the number obtained by multiplying the number of laying hens in the coop by fifteen;
(b)the horizontal distance between one perch and the next is not less than thirty centimetres and the horizontal distance between a perch and a wall or partition is not less than twenty centimetres.
(b)A coop owner shall not keep laying hens in a laying coop that has a yard to which the laying hens have access, unless the following conditions are met:
(1)the yard is fenced for protection against predators;
(2)the yard is covered to prevent the entry of birds; where the covering is made of netting – the dimensions of the mesh openings do not exceed a length of two centimetres and a width of two centimetres;
(3)access to the yard is through openings in the structure of the coop, in the wall bordering the yard only (in this paragraph – an opening);
(4)the height of each opening is at least 35 centimetres and its width is at least 40 centimetres; the total width of the openings is not less than two metres per one thousand laying hens;
(5)drinking installations that are shaded and protected from sunlight at all times are installed in the yard, and the laying hens have free access to them.

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RegulationsAdministrative Law

תקנות צער בעלי חיים (הגנה על בעלי חיים) (גידול תרנגולות מטילות והחזקתן בלולים לצרכים חקלאיים), תשפ"ב-2022

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