Agricultural News
HSUS Investigator Leaves Chickens Hurting to Get Pictures to Show Weeks Later
Wed, 17 Nov 2010 16:41:06 CST
The Humane Society of the United States on Wednesday targeted the largest producer of fresh eggs in the country, releasing images and a report it said documents federal safety violations and inhumane treatment of chickens.
The group said it had placed an undercover activist as a worker at an egg farm owned by Cal-Maine, which sells eight billion eggs a year and is based in Jackson, Miss. Cal-Maine was also one of the companies to voluntarily recall hundreds of thousands of eggs in recent weeks because of salmonella concerns.
Wayne Pacelle, CEO and President of the Humane Society, revealed his ideal for laying hens early in the briefing as he recalled the days of hens having the "sun on their backs and scratching in the dirt." Today, he says its all about crowding each hen into a space less than the size of a piece of standard notebook paper for their entire life. The recurring theme throughout the conference held by the HSUS to show off the video of the undercover work was to call for universal acceptance of cage free egg production.
"Time and again, we've found that these massive facilities caging hundreds of thousands of animals do not properly care for the birds or safeguard our food supply," society President Wayne Pacelle said in a statement. "It's time for the egg industry to embrace cage-free housing systems and move away from battery cage confinement methods."
Pacelle indicated that the HSUS did not talk with officials of Cal-Maine or of either the FDA or USDA in advance of their public show and tell on Wednesday. No effort was made to alert officials early in the month after the employee of the HSUS left the employment of Cal-Maine in order to stop the abuse the investigator witnessed.
Click on the LISTEN BAR below to hear our overview of the points that Pacelle made during his presenation on Wednesday morning.
In response to statements from the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. today issued the following statement:
Cal-Maine Foods has been a leader in accepting and implementing animal welfare measures. All of the Company's facilities are operated in full compliance with existing environmental, health and safety laws and regulations and permits. Each employee involved in the care and handling of our hens is required to review, sign and comply with our Company code of conduct regarding the ethical treatment of hens which requires employees to report any possible violations. As a fully-integrated shell egg producer, all shell egg facilities are subject to United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations and are subject to various state and local health and agricultural agencies.
All of Cal-Maine Foods' eggs are produced in accordance with United Egg Producers (UEP) animal care guidelines. Additionally, Cal-Maine Foods offers all of its customers the choice of cage-free eggs. The UEP guidelines are based on recommendations from an independent scientific advisory committee. The guidelines place top priority on the comfort, health and safety of the chickens.
None of the eggs in the recent nationwide recalls were produced in Cal-Maine facilities.
Click here for the full article and video posted on the HSUS website.
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