Cage-Free Expansion in the Mayonnaise Industry

A quiet transformation is underway within the Japanese mayonnaise industry.

Until recently, mayonnaise made with cage-free eggs was a niche product sold only in select health food stores or through mail order. However, this situation has begun to shift in recent years.

Aeon has launched its “Free From Cage-Free Egg Mayonnaise,” while Life Corporation offers cage-free egg mayonnaise under its BIO-RAL brand. Yaoko also sells private-brand products utilizing cage-free eggs.

Furthermore, the Japan Mayonnaise & Dressings Association has published its stance on animal welfare, and in 2026, it introduced “cage-free” and “plant-based” filters to the product search function for its member companies.

In addition, numerous other cage-free and barn-laid egg mayonnaises exist in Japan. (As of June 2, 2026, according to research by the Animal Rights Center)

Egg-free mayonnaise options are even more numerous and continue to increase.

The mayonnaise industry is beginning to move, slowly but surely.

Cage-Free Has Become a Global Brand Strategy

Unilever, which owns Hellmann’s—one of the world’s largest mayonnaise brands—has led the transition to cage-free for many years. In 2018, Unilever announced a goal to transition to 100% cage-free eggs globally by 2025. While this was a highly ambitious target at the time, such a commitment from a major corporation had a significant impact on the entire food industry. Subsequently, many food manufacturers, retailers, hotels, and restaurants pledged to procure cage-free eggs.

Companies do not pursue cage-free initiatives out of mere charity. They do so because they can anticipate shifts in consumer values, enhance corporate and brand value, earn consumer trust, and secure favorable terms in ESG investments, all of which contribute to a healthy business state.

This is not limited to cage-free eggs. Companies that have been quick to integrate changing social values—such as fair trade, women’s empowerment, and environmental sustainability—into their management have ultimately received high praise from markets and investors.

Animal welfare follows this same trajectory.

Unilever is Now Being Put to the Test

However, Unilever is currently facing significant criticism.

While the company has achieved 100% cage-free status in Europe and North America, it has removed commitments that included Asia and Latin America, effectively backtracking on its global cage-free pledge for 2025.

In response, the Open Wing Alliance (OWA) is currently running a strong campaign. Citizens and animal protection organizations worldwide do not accept the absurd regional disparity of selling high-quality products in some regions while selling lower-quality ones in others. Although it is the quality of products in regions outside the West that has regressed, the center of the protest movement is in the West. Unilever is at risk of losing trust in markets including Europe and North America.

Despite this situation, the momentum toward cage-free eggs will not be reversed. This is because it is beginning to take root not only in the West but also in Asia and South America.

Cage-free is not a cost.

It is an investment in trust.

Unilever moved the world because it understood that value. And the reason it faces such heavy criticism for attempting to backtrack now is that those values have already become established in society.

The Longer the Delay, the Higher the Hurdle

Meanwhile, what is the situation in Japan?

While the private-brand products from Aeon, Life, and Yaoko are important steps, they are still in the early stages compared to global trends.

The most significant player in the Japanese mayonnaise market is Kewpie. Kewpie currently has a goal to “procure 20% of the eggs used in Kewpie Mayonnaise from domestic cage-free sources by 2030.”

However, looking at Japanese companies as a whole, efforts to actively promote animal welfare as a value and link that evaluation to corporate value are still insufficient.

Interestingly, it was retailers who took the first step. Aeon, Life, and Yaoko have begun to directly appeal to consumers with cage-free eggs as part of their own brand products. This indicates that the companies closest to consumers are already beginning to recognize that value.

The change has already begun. The only question now is the speed.

Cage-free is both a brand strategy for consumers and a condition for participation in the global market. As cage-free procurement becomes standardized among Western retailers and food manufacturers, it becomes an issue affecting the future international competitiveness of Japanese companies. Consequently, some Japanese companies accept using eggs from caged hens for domestic products while being cage-free abroad. However, following Unilever’s backtracking and the subsequent protests, a stage will come when the world will no longer tolerate such double standards. We are entering an era where “commitments in only some regions,” which might have been praised before, will no longer be valued. In other words, the longer this issue is delayed, the higher the hurdle will become.

Cage-free is not a cost. It is a consideration for animals and, at the same time, an investment to build trust in a company. Just as global food companies have recognized this value and taken action, there is now a significant opportunity for the Japanese mayonnaise industry. If it is the right thing to do, it is better to do it quickly.

Doing so should lead to medium- to long-term benefits for the company as well.