Last month, we told you about the unfortunate return of so-called “ag gag” bills in several states; these are bills which aim to criminalize whistleblowing exposés of the cruel realities of factory farming. In other words, agribusiness interests are trying to shut down undercover investigations in an effort to prevent Americans from finding out what really goes on behind the closed doors of the meat, milk, and egg industries.
Here’s some encouraging news from the egg industry with a sunny side for hens: per capita egg consumption in the US has been steadily declining for the past six years!
That’s according to a recent Egg Industry Fact Sheet posted on the United Egg Producers’ website, which is based on statistics from the US Department of Agriculture. As highlighted in the graph below, in 2006 the average American ate 258.1 eggs while the estimate for 2011 drops down to 246.3 — that’s nearly one dozen fewer eggs per person.
Last week, COK — represented by the Animal Legal Defense Fund — filed a lawsuit against the California-based Cal-Cruz Hatcheries for unlawful business practices relating to undercover COK video footage documenting shockingly cruel conditions forced upon newly-hatched chicks. The complaint aims to stop the ongoing abuse of baby birds at this facility which hatches chicks destined to be slaughtered for their meat.
For two days straight, COK’s booth at the popular NBC4 Health & Fitness Expo was non-stop busy with people eager to give vegetarian eating a try. Many said they’ve already started to reduce their meat consumption and others asked us how to get started. Their comments confirm what the US Dept. of Agriculture states in a recent report: Americans are eating less and less meatAttendees were voracious for more information on vegetarian eating, and our stellar team of over a dozen volunteers shared personal stories, meal ideas, tips, free food samples, video clips of factory farming, and of course lots of printed materials.
In 2011, we announced that after working with Compassion Over Killing (COK), the Canadian-based quick-service sandwich chain, Pita Pit, added a new vegan black bean patty to its menus in over 100 locations throughout the US. We also successfully worked with the UK-based Quorn, the world’s number one brand of meat-free alternatives, to launch its first-ever, all-vegan product.
Last year, you may recall that four states–Florida, Iowa, Minnesota and New York– introduced so-called “ag gag” bills aimed at shutting down the efforts of animal protection organizations to go undercover to investigate factory farms and document the miserable conditions forced upon billions of farmed animals. While these state bills varied in content and scope, they were all supported by animal agribusiness and the mission was clear: keep animal cruelty hidden from public view by criminalizing the filming or photographing of an agricultural facility without the owner’s express consent.
Admit it. You’re only days into the new year and those resolutions about eating healthier, becoming a star athlete/vegan bodybuilder, and eating three pounds of dark, leafy greens a day are already starting to crumble. Maybe you bought membership to a gym you hope to someday visit, or maybe you shelled out for that Vitamix still safely tucked away in its box. Your goal of making a leaner, meaner, and greener self is already losing steam—you need help.
Compassion Over Killing is teaming up with the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) to represent us in a lawsuit filed today against Cal-Cruz Hatcheries. The complaint, filed in the California Superior Court, seeks to stop the alleged ongoing abuse of baby birds inside this Santa Cruz-based chicken hatchery that was exposed in the media in 2010 for shocking cruelty to animals as documented by a COK investigation.
Ok, we can’t guarantee that you’ll be able to serve like Venus or Serena Williams, run like olympian Carl Lewis or do the Tour de France with Dave Zabriskie.
But, if you’re hitting the gym and want to take a page from the pros this year, whether your favorite sport is tennis, running, cycling, triathlon, martial arts, boxing, or bodybuilding, it’s all the same advice: go vegan.