Shocking video
footage secretly recorded by Mercy For Animals at a Foster Farms
chicken slaughterhouse in
Fresno, California, has led to criminal animal cruelty charges against worker
Gabriel Cevallos.
footage secretly recorded by Mercy For Animals at a Foster Farms
chicken slaughterhouse in
Fresno, California, has led to criminal animal cruelty charges against worker
Gabriel Cevallos.
The graphic undercover video taken at Foster
Farms—an American Humane Certified chicken producer—shows Cevallos ripping out
fistfuls of feathers from live birds, repeatedly hitting a bird with a severed
chicken leg, and tossing
live birds around as if they were basketballs. Other workers were documented punching and
tormenting animals before violently slamming them into shackles and carelessly
throwing baby chicks onto the ground with no regard for their welfare.
Farms—an American Humane Certified chicken producer—shows Cevallos ripping out
fistfuls of feathers from live birds, repeatedly hitting a bird with a severed
chicken leg, and tossing
live birds around as if they were basketballs. Other workers were documented punching and
tormenting animals before violently slamming them into shackles and carelessly
throwing baby chicks onto the ground with no regard for their welfare.
Watch the footage that led to
the conviction here:
the conviction here:
Immediately following the investigation, MFA submitted a detailed legal complaint to the Fresno
County Sheriff’s Department calling for animal cruelty charges to be filed against the company and
its workers. MFA praises the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney’s
Office for pursuing justice for these abused and neglected animals.
County Sheriff’s Department calling for animal cruelty charges to be filed against the company and
its workers. MFA praises the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney’s
Office for pursuing justice for these abused and neglected animals.
American Humane Association “standards,
which cover more than 1 billion animals, fall far below those of virtually
every other humane certification program and barely exceed even the minimal
standards set by the factory farming industry itself. According to Consumer
Reports, AHA’s program
“does not require certain standards that consumers are likely to expect from a
welfare label, and producers can be certified without fulfilling 100% of the
requirements. In addition to Foster Farms, AHA has certified some of the
cruelest factory farms in North America, including Butterball and Hillandale
Farms, which have also been caught on video abusing animals.
which cover more than 1 billion animals, fall far below those of virtually
every other humane certification program and barely exceed even the minimal
standards set by the factory farming industry itself. According to Consumer
Reports, AHA’s program
“does not require certain standards that consumers are likely to expect from a
welfare label, and producers can be certified without fulfilling 100% of the
requirements. In addition to Foster Farms, AHA has certified some of the
cruelest factory farms in North America, including Butterball and Hillandale
Farms, which have also been caught on video abusing animals.
MFA is now calling on AHA and Foster Farms to
stop lying to the public and implement meaningful animal welfare requirements,
including replacing live-shackle slaughter methods with less cruel systems that
eliminate the horrific suffering caused by dumping, shackling, shocking, and
slitting the throats of conscious animals. We are also calling for an end to selective
breeding for rapid growth and a shift to slower-growing breeds to prevent
health problems related to accelerated growth. Birds should be provided with
more space, clean litter, access to adequate light, and environmental
enrichments. Video monitoring systems that live stream to the internet should
also be installed to deter egregious acts of violence against animals.
stop lying to the public and implement meaningful animal welfare requirements,
including replacing live-shackle slaughter methods with less cruel systems that
eliminate the horrific suffering caused by dumping, shackling, shocking, and
slitting the throats of conscious animals. We are also calling for an end to selective
breeding for rapid growth and a shift to slower-growing breeds to prevent
health problems related to accelerated growth. Birds should be provided with
more space, clean litter, access to adequate light, and environmental
enrichments. Video monitoring systems that live stream to the internet should
also be installed to deter egregious acts of violence against animals.
Please take action by signing
our petition urging
American Humane Association and Foster Farms to implement meaningful animal
welfare policies at once.
our petition urging
American Humane Association and Foster Farms to implement meaningful animal
welfare policies at once.
If you or a friend or family member purchased
Foster Farms chicken products in the past year, please contact us at [email protected].
