USA-MCDONALD'S/FARM McDonald's, Tyson Foods drop farm after videotape shows animal cruelty

Record ID: 142361

  • Title: USA-MCDONALD'S/FARM McDonald's, Tyson Foods drop farm after videotape shows animal cruelty
  • Date: 28th August 2015
  • Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (AUGUST 27, 2015) (REUTERS) WIDE SHOT OF NATHAN RUNKLE, PRESIDENT OF MERCY FOR ANIMALS, AT PODIUM (SOUNDBITE) (English) NATHAN RUNKLE, PRESIDENT OF MERCY FOR ANIMALS, SAYING: "On nearly a daily basis our investigator documented the owners of this factory farm violently clubbing birds with spiked objects, stepping on their heads, breaking their necks and throwing them aside to die slow, agonizing deaths."
  • Embargoed: 12th September 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA1UIME80LKQM44S262I3GLIE9M
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS GRAPHIC FOOTAGE
    McDonald's Corp and Tyson Foods both severed ties on Thursday (August 27) with a Tennessee farm after an undercover video shot by animal rights activists was released that shows purported farm employees stabbing, clubbing and stomping on chickens.
    The videotape, which was unveiled by Mercy For Animals at a news conference in Los Angeles, depicts gruesome animal cruelty toward the birds at what the group said was T&S Farm in Dukedom, Tennessee, which was under contract to Tyson Foods.
    Tyson supplies chicken meat to McDonald's, the world's biggest fast-food chain, for its McNuggets.
    Representatives for T&S Farm could not immediately be reached for comment.
    "We are currently investigating this matter but based upon what we know, we are terminating the contract with the grower," said Christine Daugherty, the Vice President of sustainable food production for Tyson Foods.
    McDonald's said in a statement it supported Tyson's decision and that it was working with Tyson to investigate the situation further.
    "We believe treating animals with care and respect is an integral part of a responsible supply chain and find the behavior depicted in this video to be completely unacceptable," McDonald's said.
    An investigator for the Weakley County Sheriff's Office said the agency had opened an investigation into the farm and was working with prosecutors.
    On the videotape, which Mercy For Animals activists said documented three weeks of animal abuse at the farm, workers can be seen stepping on birds' necks, stuffing them in cramped cages and bludgeoning them with clubs.
    "Remember that for five years in a row, Tyson awarded grower of the year to this facility. So it's too little, too late," Mercy for Animals President Nathan Runkle told the news conference. He said the farm typically housed over 120,000 chickens.
    "As a civilized society it is our moral obligation to prevent the suffering of all animals, including those that are raised and killed for food," added Runkle.
    McDonald's announced earlier this year it would phase out its use of chickens raised with certain kinds of antibiotics at its 14,000 U.S. restaurants as part of a major restructuring plan to reverse a long sales slump.
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