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Corporation continues to support the worst abuses
On May 1, KFC issued a news release claiming to be adopting “industry-leading poultry guidelines.”
PETA is disgusted that KFC would attempt to deceive compassionate consumers: KFC’s release is worded so as to reassure chicken consumers who are anxious to hear that chickens are not cruelly treated by KFC and its suppliers and slaughterers. But, in fact, KFC continues to ignore its own animal welfare advisory board’s recommendations as well as those of the humane community, still has not adopted the eight key minimum reforms, and instead continues to hide behind the chicken industry’s skirts, hoping that this will all go away and pretending that it needs government permission to switch to gas killing, an accepted method that requires nothing more than the decency to implement it.
These industry “standards” do nothing to allow chickens to have anything resembling a natural life. Instead, they allow for the drugging and breeding of animals to make them grow so quickly that they can barely stand and are in constant pain from splintered limbs, from being slammed into crates when inspectors aren’t watching, from having their beaks seared off, and from being sent through the slaughter process while still conscious.
McDonald’s held off animal activists by pledging to investigate alternatives in 1994 but didn’t make a single improvement until six years later, after PETA launched a campaign against the company. Burger King sent out a similar release the day that PETA launched a campaign against it and again two months later, but real reforms didn’t come for another four months. KFC officials have said from the beginning that they are “committed to the humane treatment of animals,” yet we’ve been asking them to commit to standards for more than two years but KFC continues to refuse to implement the recommendations of its own farmed animal welfare experts.
KFC could stop PETA’s campaign today by pledging to implement our eight scientifically researched demands within a given timeframe.
Please commit to a demonstration at KFC in May: www.kfccruelty.com/indexMOA.html
Our Key Demands (Not One of Which Has Been Addressed)
Replace electrical stunning and throat-slicing with gas killing. Experts agree that gas killing causes less suffering for birds than KFC’s present method of snapping chickens’ legs into metal shackles and slicing their throats open, often while they are still conscious.
Install cameras in slaughterhouses to enforce humane standards. Cameras should be installed at key points for animal handling, including unloading areas, the point of entry into the “stun” bath, the point of entry into the scalding tank, and places where chickens have their throats slit.
Switch to mechanized chicken-gathering. Studies have shown that when using manual methods, there are four times as many broken legs, more than eight times as much bruising, and increased stress.
Use genetic selection for leaner breeding birds. Breed leaner, healthier birds instead of breeding the biggest, fattest birds possible.
Stop forcing rapid growth and using growth-promoting substances. These practices result in more metabolic disorders, painful chronic lameness, and a higher mortality rate.
Give chickens at least 1.5 square feet per bird, and give breeding flocks at least 4 square feet per bird.
Include sheltered areas and perches in chickenhouses. This would enhance the birds’ living space, reducing their stress and aggression, and allow them to engage in some of their natural behaviors.
Allow birds the opportunity to fulfill their natural desire for activity. Provide the birds with whole green cabbages to peck at and eat. The cabbages stimulate healthy activity, dispel boredom, and provide nutrients without adding to the weight problems of the birds.
On May 1, KFC issued a news release claiming to be adopting “industry-leading poultry guidelines.”
PETA is disgusted that KFC would attempt to deceive compassionate consumers: KFC’s release is worded so as to reassure chicken consumers who are anxious to hear that chickens are not cruelly treated by KFC and its suppliers and slaughterers. But, in fact, KFC continues to ignore its own animal welfare advisory board’s recommendations as well as those of the humane community, still has not adopted the eight key minimum reforms, and instead continues to hide behind the chicken industry’s skirts, hoping that this will all go away and pretending that it needs government permission to switch to gas killing, an accepted method that requires nothing more than the decency to implement it.
These industry “standards” do nothing to allow chickens to have anything resembling a natural life. Instead, they allow for the drugging and breeding of animals to make them grow so quickly that they can barely stand and are in constant pain from splintered limbs, from being slammed into crates when inspectors aren’t watching, from having their beaks seared off, and from being sent through the slaughter process while still conscious.
McDonald’s held off animal activists by pledging to investigate alternatives in 1994 but didn’t make a single improvement until six years later, after PETA launched a campaign against the company. Burger King sent out a similar release the day that PETA launched a campaign against it and again two months later, but real reforms didn’t come for another four months. KFC officials have said from the beginning that they are “committed to the humane treatment of animals,” yet we’ve been asking them to commit to standards for more than two years but KFC continues to refuse to implement the recommendations of its own farmed animal welfare experts.
KFC could stop PETA’s campaign today by pledging to implement our eight scientifically researched demands within a given timeframe.
Please commit to a demonstration at KFC in May: www.kfccruelty.com/indexMOA.html
Our Key Demands (Not One of Which Has Been Addressed)
Replace electrical stunning and throat-slicing with gas killing. Experts agree that gas killing causes less suffering for birds than KFC’s present method of snapping chickens’ legs into metal shackles and slicing their throats open, often while they are still conscious.
Install cameras in slaughterhouses to enforce humane standards. Cameras should be installed at key points for animal handling, including unloading areas, the point of entry into the “stun” bath, the point of entry into the scalding tank, and places where chickens have their throats slit.
Switch to mechanized chicken-gathering. Studies have shown that when using manual methods, there are four times as many broken legs, more than eight times as much bruising, and increased stress.
Use genetic selection for leaner breeding birds. Breed leaner, healthier birds instead of breeding the biggest, fattest birds possible.
Stop forcing rapid growth and using growth-promoting substances. These practices result in more metabolic disorders, painful chronic lameness, and a higher mortality rate.
Give chickens at least 1.5 square feet per bird, and give breeding flocks at least 4 square feet per bird.
Include sheltered areas and perches in chickenhouses. This would enhance the birds’ living space, reducing their stress and aggression, and allow them to engage in some of their natural behaviors.
Allow birds the opportunity to fulfill their natural desire for activity. Provide the birds with whole green cabbages to peck at and eat. The cabbages stimulate healthy activity, dispel boredom, and provide nutrients without adding to the weight problems of the birds.