DawnWatch: Shocking MFA egg farm investigation on 20/20 and 1500 news

Over the last few days an undercover investigation conducted by Mercy for Animals has appeared in approximately 1500 news outlets. ABC got the ball rolling on Friday November 18 with a spot on Good Morning America and then extensive coverage on 20/20 that you can watch on line at http://tinyurl.com/7a4ub8q

The expose of unsanitary conditions at Sparboe egg farms has since led both McDonalds and Target to dump them as a supplier.

 

While the 20/20 story focuses on the unsanitary conditions, "ugly acts of animal cruelty, many too graphic to be broadcast" are also discussed, with the Mercy for Animals undercover investigator saying of the hens:

"They are thrown, they are grabbed by the neck, they are slammed in and out of cages."

Standard animal cruelty is also discussed. The reporter tells us:

"At Sparboe, like most major egg producers, the chickens are kept in what are called battery cages, six to a cage, stacked high in rows twice the length of a football field. Egg producers say they are cost efficient and scientifically acceptable."

But the story cuts immediately to the Mercy for Animals investigator who comments:

"They literally spend their entire lives laying eggs for McDonalds, for their consumers, in these battery cages, where they do not have the space to fully spread their wings or walk around."

Please send ABC's 20/20 a huge thank you for showing us where eggs come from. The show takes comments at http://abcnews.go.com/Site/page?id=3271346&cat=20/20

Most of the follow-up coverage has focused on the decision by McDonalds and Target to dump Sparboe as a supplier. But of course changing suppliers won't solve much as it is not possible to supply companies that size with eggs that were produced in a way that gives hens anything that could be considered a decent life. (And even on the best possible egg farms we have to ask what happened to the males.) So this story gives us the opportunity to spread the word about the benefits to our health, the environment and most of all to the animals, of choosing a plant-based diet. As the story has been run by close to 1500 news outlets it has probably been in your local paper. Why not check your paper's website and then send a quick letter to the editor? Some smaller papers publish the majority of letters they receive. The animals need your voice and this story has given you the perfect opportunity to use it, so why not? If you have trouble finding the correct email address for a lette
r to your editor I am happy to help, though you'll usually find it on a "contact us" tab or by calling the paper and asking.

Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. Remember that shorter letters are more likely to be published.