To meet consumers’ changing expectations and preferences, McDonald’s announced that it will fully transition to cage-free eggs for its nearly 16,000 restaurants in the U.S. and Canada over the next 10 years. “Our customers are increasingly interested in knowing more about their food and where it comes from,” said McDonald’s USA President Mike Andres. “Our decision to source only cage-free eggs reinforces the focus we’re placing on food quality and our menu to meet what consumers truly want.”

“We’re proud of the work we’re doing with farmers and suppliers to advance environmentally and socially conscious practices for the animals in our supply chain,” said Marion Gross, senior vice president and Chief Supply Chain Officer of McDonald’s North America. “This is a bold move and we’re confident in our ability to provide a quality, safe, and consistent supply.

“Animal welfare has always been important to us and our customers,” added Gross. “Today’s announcement is another big milestone building on our work with industry experts and suppliers to improve the treatment of animals.”

This week’s news follows other actions announced this year by McDonald’s USA to source only chicken raised without antibiotics important to human medicine by 2017 and to offer milk jugs of low-fat white milk and fat-free chocolate milk from cows that have not been treated with rbST, an artificial growth hormone.