WA farm cooped up 'free-range' hens: ACCC

The manager of a West Australian egg producer knew his "free range" chickens lived in dreadful conditions that would deter them from going outside, a court has heard.

Snowdale Holdings is fighting allegations it misled shoppers over its "free range" hens.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) lawyer Gail Archer said the Federal Court action had revealed conditions at the company's Carabooda and Swan Valley farms were worse than originally thought.

Manager Barry Cocking had admitted most of his birds did not leave the barns, Ms Archer said, and based on eyewitness and expert testimonies, it was probable that half the chickens at both farms never got outside.

That was because the overstocked barns had only one exit that was too small.

Snowdale did not provide the court with its flock sizes for the Carabooda farm, but based on the number of eggs laid, the ACCC calculated that up to 17,000 chickens were kept in a barn.

The court heard Snowdale's "Free Range Eggs by Ellah" were advertised as being sourced from the Swan Valley farm, but they were consolidated from both properties and put indiscriminately into cartons.

Ms Archer said Swan Valley was the show farm that theoretically had more space and was where Mr Cocking would take the media for pre-arranged tours.

During those tours, wheat was thrown near the barn exits and hay or straw laid in the paddocks to encourage the chickens to go outside, she said.

Snowdale lawyer Peter McGowan said the ACCC's case depended upon what was meant by free range.

He said unless one could mathematically prove most hens went outside on most days, one could "fall foul" of the free range representation.

The hearing continues.