When it comes to the activities of big and powerful corporations, Ryan Gosling refuses to walk on eggshells.

The actor has penned a letter to the CEO of budget supermarket Costco imploring the chain to start selling cage-free eggs.

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Gosling’s protestations come after the Humane Society of the United States investigated practices at a major Costco egg supplier, only to find extreme instances of animal mistreatment.

The 34-year-old Hollywood star felt so moved by the report he was compelled to voice his outrage directly to CEO Craig Jelinek.

In a letter addressed to Mr Jelinek, Gosling describes the “rows upon rows of birds confined in filth-laden cages with the mummified corpses of their cage-mates”.

“[I]t’s appalling that Costco has been selling these eggs with deceptive labeling on cartons featuring graphics of birds living out in a green pasture,” he writes.

“You’re already eliminating cages for veal calves and pigs—don’t you feel that chickens also deserve the same mercy?

“I sincerely hope that Costco will set plans now to go completely cage-free for its eggs,” he concluded.

Gosling hand-signed the letter, posted on the Cage Free Future website which aims to “bring farming into the 21st century”.