Prosecutor going after free-range egg fraud

The Public Prosecutor is going after an egg hatchery from Babberich and three egg farms from Landhorst, Leveroij and Haule for selling millions of ordinary eggs as free range eggs. According to the Public Prosecutor, the egg farms, with the help of the hatchery, sold millions of ordinary eggs as free range eggs to earn more money. Free range eggs are more expensive than ordinary eggs. During the hearing in the court in Arnhem yesterday, the prosecutor demanded a fine of 150 thousand euros against the egg hatchery and fines of 100 thousand, 75 thousand and 50 thousand euros against each of the egg farms. The prosecutor also demanded 240 hours of community service for the 5 directors of these businesses. The prosecutor called the fraud extremely serious. "The defendants, by their actions, seriously undermined the confidence that consumers should have in the product they buy." he said, adding that they also caused harm to animal welfare. The defendants' actions were also very risky to the sector, due to the fact that the Netherlands exports a lot of eggs. "The reputation of the Netherlands as an exporting country may be compromised by the actions of these suspects."