Bulgaria's Minister of Agriculture and Food, Miroslav Naydenov, has announced that the country has fulfilled all requirements of the European Commission (EC) regarding laying hen welfare.

Speaking Monday in the central town of Veliko Tarnovo, he boasted that Bulgaria had managed to meet the end-June deadline set by the EC and would not face sanctions.

"Staring Monday, all poultry farms in Bulgaria are raising happy hens and we met the deadline we were given earlier," the Agriculture Minister stated, reiterating that Bulgaria would not be penalized by the EC.

"Humane treatment is important because it brings high quality meat and eggs to consumers," Naydenov added.

He further specified that there were a total of 122 poultry farms in Bulgaria raising 2.33 million "happy" hens.