Ian McCartney MP

MPs, TV chefs and 500 restaurants have backed a new push to 'Simply Ask' about farm animal welfare. A host of MPs including Ian McCartney signed a giant seven-foot egg at Westminster today in support of a new campaign called 'Simply Ask', launched by RSPCA Freedom Food during Farm Animal Week.

Restaurants that cannot answer questions about the origin of their food leave a bad taste in customers' mouths, according to the RSPCA's Freedom Food scheme.

New research has revealed that a third of the population would boycott a restaurant that could not answer a question about where they source their products.

Nearly 60 per cent of us also think we have a right to know the origin of our food when eating out, and some of Britain's top chefs agree.

Ian McCartney MP said, "The British public need to stop being so reticent in restaurants and start asking where their food comes from. It's your right to know the origin of the food you are served and what types of farms are being used - and the mark of a good restaurant is one that is proud to tell you."

In response to this news, Freedom Food has launched a new long-term campaign called 'Simply Ask' which aims to get people asking about where the food comes from when eating out.

Where do your eggs come from?

Beginning with eggs this year, 'Simply Ask' is urging diners to start holding restaurants to account by demanding to know if they use eggs from hens that have not been kept in cages. An astonishing 80 per cent of whole and liquid eggs used in restaurants, pubs and cafes as well as in products (such as quiches and cakes) are still from hens kept in cruel battery cages.

So, the message is simple: 'Simply Ask' what eggs are being used next time you eat out and help make a difference to the lives of millions of hens.
Egg production is not the only welfare concern and Freedom Food intends 'Simply Ask' to extend to other species as the campaign progresses.

Visit www.freedomfood.co.uk/simplyask for more information - including an 'eggs-factor' guide to which restaurants, pubs and cafes are supporting Simply Ask.