An undercover investigator with The Humane Society of the
United States has given the world an
eye-opening first look inside a “spent hen slaughterhouse in Minnesota,
exposing standard industry cruelty that would be illegal if the victims weren’t birds. The graphic hidden-camera video shows egg-laying hens who
have been discarded by the egg industry being violently shackled upside down,
painfully immobilized with electric shocks, and often scalded alive and drowned
in scorching hot water.
United States has given the world an
eye-opening first look inside a “spent hen slaughterhouse in Minnesota,
exposing standard industry cruelty that would be illegal if the victims weren’t birds. The graphic hidden-camera video shows egg-laying hens who
have been discarded by the egg industry being violently shackled upside down,
painfully immobilized with electric shocks, and often scalded alive and drowned
in scorching hot water.
Despite the fact that more than 90 percent of the animals
killed for food in the US are chickens, the United States Department of
Agriculture specifically excludes poultry from the federal Humane Methods of
Slaughter Act, which requires livestock to be rendered unconscious prior to slaughter.
For no good reason, the USDA chooses to define “livestock as cows and pigs,
but not chickens or turkeys, forcing billions of animals a year to endure
almost unimaginable suffering at slaughter while still conscious and able to
feel pain.
killed for food in the US are chickens, the United States Department of
Agriculture specifically excludes poultry from the federal Humane Methods of
Slaughter Act, which requires livestock to be rendered unconscious prior to slaughter.
For no good reason, the USDA chooses to define “livestock as cows and pigs,
but not chickens or turkeys, forcing billions of animals a year to endure
almost unimaginable suffering at slaughter while still conscious and able to
feel pain.
Watch the hidden-camera video here:
Perhaps worse than a torturous slaughter is the
nightmare these birds endure throughout their short lives. Numerous undercover
investigations by Mercy For Animals at egg factories across the country (including this, this and this) have revealed rampant
animal abuse in the egg industry, including workers burning off the beaks of
chicks without painkillers, sadistically and maliciously tormenting animals, and
throwing live birds into plastic bags and leaving them to suffocate.
nightmare these birds endure throughout their short lives. Numerous undercover
investigations by Mercy For Animals at egg factories across the country (including this, this and this) have revealed rampant
animal abuse in the egg industry, including workers burning off the beaks of
chicks without painkillers, sadistically and maliciously tormenting animals, and
throwing live birds into plastic bags and leaving them to suffocate.
MFA has also exposed the standard egg industry practice of
cramming birds inside barren, wire battery cages for nearly their entire lives.
Typically, up to a dozen hens are crammed into a single cage. These cages are stacked
in tiers inside giant windowless sheds that can run the length of two football
fields. Each shed can confine
hundreds of thousands of chickens, each with less space than a single sheet of
notebook paper to live out her entire life. In such extreme confinement, these
poor animals can’t even spread their wings, much less move around without
stepping on and climbing over other hens.
cramming birds inside barren, wire battery cages for nearly their entire lives.
Typically, up to a dozen hens are crammed into a single cage. These cages are stacked
in tiers inside giant windowless sheds that can run the length of two football
fields. Each shed can confine
hundreds of thousands of chickens, each with less space than a single sheet of
notebook paper to live out her entire life. In such extreme confinement, these
poor animals can’t even spread their wings, much less move around without
stepping on and climbing over other hens.
Although these inherently cruel cages are now banned
in California, millions of animals throughout the rest of the country continue
to suffer in these gut-wrenching conditions. That is why MFA is calling on
United Egg Producers—the industry trade group that represents nearly 90 percent
of U.S. egg producers—to require all its members to go cage-free.
in California, millions of animals throughout the rest of the country continue
to suffer in these gut-wrenching conditions. That is why MFA is calling on
United Egg Producers—the industry trade group that represents nearly 90 percent
of U.S. egg producers—to require all its members to go cage-free.
If you would like to help alleviate much of the misery hens
endure at the hands of the egg industry, please sign
our petition here.
endure at the hands of the egg industry, please sign
our petition here.
But remember, as a
consumer, you have enormous power to help put an end to the cruel exploitation
of animals entirely by adopting a healthy and humane vegan diet. Visit ChooseVeg.com for great-tasting recipes
and helpful tips for making the transition to a vegan lifestyle.
