A new investigation by our friends at Mercy for Animals has exposed once again the egg industry's horrific abuse of chickens. Workers at a supplier of NuCal—one of the largest egg companies in the U.S.—were documented ripping weakened birds out of tiny metal battery cages and throwing them violently into a "kill cart." Sick and injured birds were denied veterinary care and were left to die in filthy, crowded cages. Undercover investigators caught one worker twisting a sick bird's neck, throwing her on the ground, and leaving her to die.
Watch the shocking video footage here.
Every time animal advocates investigate
egg factory farms, they expose horrific cruelty just like this. On factory farms, life is hell for chickens. Female chicks are torn from their mothers as babies, and the males—who are useless to the egg industry—often are ground up alive or suffocated in trash bags. Baby birds' beaks are cut off with a hot blade, and then they are crammed with several other birds into tiny wire "battery cages" for two agonizing years before they are slaughtered.
Any company that buys eggs from factory farms is paying for the same kind of cruel treatment documented above.
Please urge Triarc—the major restaurant company that owns Arby's and that will soon own Wendy's—to lessen the abuse of animals in the egg industry by only buying from farms that sell cage-free eggs. We know that Triarc purchases a vast majority of its eggs from factory farms, and choosing the least cruel farms possible will eliminate some needless suffering.
As you're making purchasing decisions, remember that while
"cage-free" eggs are a significant step up from the nightmarish conditions on battery-cage egg farms, they are by no means cruelty-free—the chickens all die in the same cruel manner. Consider skipping eggs altogether and going vegan. Visit
VegCooking.com for delicious egg-free recipes and baking tips.
