These Chickens Have Spoken June 3, 2008
Posted by Pulin Modi at June 3, 2008 10:03 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 2 ) | TrackBackIf you haven't heard about some historic progress on the Kentucky Fried Cruelty campaign, check this out.
The vegan "chicken" that is now offered at most Canadian KFCs and the groundbreaking welfare standards that will now help chickens killed for KFCs in Canada make me really impressed with the hard work you have all done on this campaign. Of course, we're still campaigning against KFC in the US, UK, and elsewhere around the world. So check out some ways to get involved.
And if you need even more inspiration to be part of this campaign, take a look at how much fun these birds have while celebrating with some grapes (they're straight-edge so no wine for them)...
Thanks, friends!
Harris Teeter Victory February 21, 2008
Posted by Pulin Modi at February 21, 2008 3:36 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 4 ) | TrackBack
TAGGED:
meat vegetarian chickens turkeys eggs Harris Teeter
You may remember that Safeway recently announced some pretty significant improvements to its animal welfare standards. Well, Harris Teeter, a subsidiary of Charlotte-based Ruddick Corporation, which has nearly 200 stores in seven states—has announced groundbreaking plans to improve conditions for some of the animals who are killed for its stores. According to the company's new plan, which places it at the forefront of the grocery industry regarding animal welfare, Harris Teeter will do the following:
- Give purchasing preference to suppliers that use or switch to controlled-atmosphere systems—the least-cruel method of bird slaughter, begin purchasing 2 percent of its turkeys by the fall of 2008 from suppliers that use this method, and increase its purchase of chickens killed by controlled-atmosphere slaughter systems by 5 percent over each of the next three years (for a total of 26 percent).
- Give purchasing preference to suppliers that are phasing out gestation crates—restrictive metal enclosures that confine pregnant pigs—and increasing the amount of pig meat that it purchases from suppliers that are phasing out gestation crates by 10 percent in 2009, 15 percent in 2010, and 20 percent in 2011.
- Introduce a new line of Harris Teeter-branded cage-free eggs, give purchasing preference to producers of cage-free eggs, increase the amount of cage-free eggs that it sells from 6 percent to 9 percent by 2009, and work toward increasing that amount to 12 percent in 2010.
What does this all mean? Basically, as an individual and as an organization, it's without a doubt best to not eat any flesh or eggs. Animals don't have "meat" on their bones for us to consume—it's a part of their bodies! And they don't lay eggs for people to steal and eat—it's actually part of their menstrual cycle. However, it's by far better to have Harris Teeter make these changes at the corporate level as standards for farmed animals become gradually better than to make no improvements at all. So we commend Harris Teeter for taking a step in the right direction.
How A Lettuce Bikini Helped Turkeys January 22, 2008
Posted by Pulin Modi at January 22, 2008 1:25 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 2 ) | TrackBackMy friend and co-worker Nicole is pretty incredible. Here's a little guide to her recent trip to Philly.
Step 1. Figure out a catchy way to get people's attention (lettuce bikini).
Step 2. Figure out something everyone will want (vegan "turkey" sandwiches).
Step 3. Find someone who likes turkeys (Ben Franklin, who once suggested that turkeys should be the national bird).
Step 4. Have a "lettuce lady" feed "Ben Franklin" a sandwich.
Step 5. Tell thousands of more people about the way turkeys are abused by doing an interview for the evening news.
Step 6. Smile knowing that there are creative and fun ways to reach out to people about animal rights issues.
Remember to please join the peta2 Street Team so you can learn about all the ways you can help out where you live with cool activism ideas. That's what I love about working in this office. If everyone paid attention to something as simple as a leaflet, we'd have an easy job. But the fact is it's hard to get people's attention these days! So we'll do what it takes to shine the spotlight on the suffering animals endure and inform people about what we can all do to help stop it.
The Turkey Stick-on Mission for the UK December 6, 2007
Posted by Pulin Modi at December 6, 2007 3:33 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 10 ) | TrackBack It's the night before Christmasand all through the house,
not a creature was stirring,
(especially not the millions of turkeys who are slaughtered each year).
-Martin from peta2 UK
Now I know that this doesn't necessarily work as well as the traditional version of the poem, but I am pretty sure it gets the message across of the mass slaughter that happens every year for Christmas. Most of the time when I walk around the local supermarket it makes me go whiter than frosty to see the rows and rows of carcasses stacked up on the shelves. Advertising has done a good job in taking people's minds away from what they are truly eating—the decomposing corpse of a small tortured bird. Wouldn't it be great if we had stickers to help educate people about this issue? Well, we do! And they are exclusively for UK members of the peta2 Street Team!
Out of the 35 million turkeys who are killed each year in the UK, 10 million are slaughtered for the Christmas holidays. That's a huge number of deaths for one festival that should be about caring for each other. Much like the demonic KFC, turkey farms treat animals as a tool to make money. The birds are crammed in barns of up to 20,000 with no light and conditions so bad some resort to cannibalism (something that does not occur in the wild).
But there is a way of reminding people what they are buying when they hand over their death money.
What we want you to do!
1) Fill out the form below to request your stickers (remember UK residents only)
2) Wait for the post to arrive—Royal Mail, what can you say!
3) Place stickers in legally appropriate places, (e.g. your parents’ turkey this Christmas)
Who Watched "I Am an Animal" Last Night? November 20, 2007
Posted by Marta at November 20, 2007 2:24 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 9 ) | TrackBackI certainly did! I'd been looking forward to watching HBO's I Am an Animal: The Story of Ingrid Newkirk and PETA since I first saw cameras around the office back when I was interning. Lara had a viewing party at her apartment, so a bunch of us got together with snacks and drinks in hand to tune in. You can imagine that there were certainly a lot of "Hey, there's Jason!" types of comments floating around.
Anyway, the documentary did not disappoint. Anyone who watched was able to catch a glimpse of what it's like to be Ingrid and what she goes through on a daily basis. I don't want to give anything away for those of you who haven't seen it yet, but the movie definitely gave me an extra dose of inspiration—I hope it caused those of you who saw it to feel the same way. We've already heard from many of you, and the resounding response is that your respect has only increased for Ingrid and PETA, and we're really happy to hear that!
One of the parts of the film I found to be really heart-wrenching was our undercover investigation into a Butterball Turkey Plant. I'd seen the investigation footage before, but it's always horrifying to watch and hear about what's happening to these animals. Not only that, I could never imagine having the courage and strength it takes to be an undercover investigator. People who conduct our undercover investigations have to mask any empathy they have for animals in order to get footage to show people what is really happening to animals. In honor of the 50,000 birds killed daily at the turkey plant investigated and the brave folks who went undercover to expose the cruelty, please watch our Butterball investigation and pass it along to your family and friends before Thanksgiving.
If you watched the documentary, what did you think of it? And if not, are you planning on checking it out? Hint: The correct answer is yes.
♥ Marta
Vegan Turkey Winners! November 16, 2007
Posted by Marta at November 16, 2007 9:11 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 6 ) | TrackBack
TAGGED:
Vegan giveaway Thanksgiving turkeys turkey
Last week, I told you about our Garden Protein Vegan Turkey Essay Contest. We asked people to enter by writing an essay, letting their friends and family know why they won't be eating turkeys for Thanksgiving. We managed to narrow things down to five lucky winners, and as I'm typing this, some vegan turkey is making its way to each and every one of them. Want to know why they won? Check out what they had to say for yourself:
Tess Derusha, 15
Gainesville, GA
This Thanksgiving, I will be keeping turkey off my plate. It took me a long time to decide what I would say, I thought I'd go in detail about how they die but now understand it doesn't really matter how the turkeys are killed because no matter which way they're killed, they're always going to end up on someone's plate. Why is it that every time we think of Thanksgiving we think of turkey? Since when is Thanksgiving only about food? Isn't it about being thankful for what we have? Maybe for once the turkeys would like to feel thankful for what they have too, because in the sheds that they live in, they have nothing: No family, no love, no real home, no peace—they live in fear until they are killed. Once they die, they end up on someone's plate. We look at our pets and we feel thankful for them; they feel thankful for us. You would never eat your pet for Thanksgiving, so why eat a turkey? They are just like your pet; they feel emotions too. When you have a baby you're thankful for that, you love the baby, but the mother turkeys don't even get to see their babies. The turkeys grow up with no family whatsoever. You wouldn't eat a helpless baby, so why eat someone else's baby? This year if you really want to feel thankful, leave meat off your plate and out of your house, because if everyone could see how much animals are like us they wouldn't eat them...This Thanksgiving make the turkeys thankful—get fake meat instead. Thank you, from me and the turkeys.
Tara Jeffries, 21
Greensboro, NC
I choose not to consume animal products because I do not believe in taking something that does not belong to me. Because animals do not have the ability to communicate their consent to us, as humans, it is wrong of us to use their bodies or their eggs or their milk or their fur or anything else for our own use. Around Thanksgiving especially, hundreds of thousands of turkeys are slaughtered. They've lived a miserable life in cages that may or may not even allow them to turn around in a complete circle. Their muscles haven't developed, their morale is lower than low, and they've never even seen the outside. Even free range turkeys are still killed off before they've been able to live a long and happy life. I would not kill and eat any of my human friends; I won't eat any of my animal friends either.
Anthony Lyons, 22
Lakewood, OH
I have now been vegetarian for 9 years, since I realized the sad but true process of producing meat. Not only is the process extremely cruel, it is also damaging to our bodies and our environment. And right now is a huge time to realize how much this is adversely affecting out planet. With this is mind I have decided to adhere more to a vegan diet. I have always preferred eating more dairy/egg free meals for the satisfaction and compassion of the animals that would need to produce my food. Me and my friends always make Tofurkys for the holidays and also encourage others to join. Holidays are a big time to show others that you care for our future on this planet as well as the animals that might have died for your meal. When your friends and family see that you have omitted the normal turkey fare from your plate for a much healthier, and caring meal it will have its impact. This year I plan on making a few Tofurkys as they are wonderful and everyone is always eager to taste!
Katie Mogul, 17
Toms River, NJ
For as long as I can remember, I've wanted to give up meat. I would try to "sacrifice" it for Lent, but my mom wouldn't allow it. This past summer, I decided that I was old enough to make my own choices, and I've been a vegetarian. Now, back in my meat-eating days, Thanksgiving used to be my favorite holiday. I figured it wouldn't be as attractive this year without being able to eat the main course. But as I researched, I discovered tons of yummy-looking alternatives. I am now in the process of designing my own menu. Hopefully, I'll also be able to show my family and friends that there are different ways to enjoy this dinner without eating meat. I hope to inspire the people at dinner. My parents always try to find a problem with my vegetarianism, but maybe they'll see how mature I can be (when it comes to eating) and the issue will be taken more seriously in my family. I know I'll be more comfortable knowing that nothing I consume on Thanksgiving will be tainted with dead animal meat. That's something to be thankful for.
Suzanne Waggoner, 16
Tomah, WI
Thanksgiving is known to me as a day of mass murder because of the way the turkeys and other birds are treated. It is nothing more than a way for corporations to make money. They don't care about how these innocent creatures are treated. They are only concerned about what kind of profit they will make from their deaths. At this time of year, turkeys are loaded with extra amounts of growth hormones because heavier turkeys will rake in larger amounts of money than a normal sized turkey would. These animals suffer from infection, broken legs, and other painful injuries. As Marilyn Manson states in "The Fight Song," "The death of one is a tragedy, the death of a million is just a statistic." These words apply to the animals that are killed each year for Thanksgiving and other holidays. When just a single, innocent animal is killed, people feel sorry for that one animal, but when millions are killed in genocide, it will only become a mere statistic in the growing rate of sales that holiday season. Because there are too many deaths to count, people don't stop to think of the number that are killed and just continue to buy these so called "food" items. It's sickening to think that a lifeless being is lying on my plate. That blood, bones and muscle is what I would be consuming for a meal. I choose to eat cruelty-free on Thanksgiving not only for the health benefits, but out of respect for animals!
Wishing for some vegan turkey for yourself? You're in luck! Garden Protein Veggie Turkey Breasts are available at your local Whole Foods, and there's always the classic tummy-pleasing Tofurky, which you can find at pretty much every major grocery store across the country, so be sure to get yourself to the store to buy one soon!
And if you're looking for some Thanksgiving recipes, here are a few suggestions:
Creamy Chive Mashed Potatoes
Roasted Rosemary Sweet Potatoes
Best-Ever Green Bean Bake
Roasted Garlic Gravy
Pumpkin Patch 'Cheesecake'
Thanksgiving is a time to be, well, thankful, and I just wanted to say thanks to all of you who help save animals by not eating them. You're an inspiration to all of us at peta2. I'm not gonna lie, sometimes it brings a tear to my eyes to see the difference you're all making in the way animals are treated. I love being able to help you all help animals. That's what I'll be thankful for on Thanksgiving. That and my full (animal-free) stomach, of course.
What will you be thankful for?
♥ Marta
Win Delicious Veggie Turkey for Thanksgiving! November 8, 2007
Posted by Marta at November 8, 2007 9:59 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 1 ) | TrackBackBy now I'm sure you've learned that those of us here at peta2 love the following things:
-Helping animals
-Helping others to help animals
-Giving away free stuff
-Anything related to vegan food
And when we can do everything in one easy step, well that just makes us unbelievably happy. Thanksgiving is just two short weeks away, and we're giving you the chance to win some delicious veggie turkey breasts to share with your family. All you have to do is fill out this form letting your friends and family members know why you're choosing to leave the bird corpse off your plate this Thanksgiving. What better way to help animals than not eat them? There will be five lucky winners, and the deadline to enter is this Sunday, November 11, so get to it!
Now that Thanksgiving is on your brain, I want to share a tasty treat I stumbled across on the peta2 message boards around Thanksgiving last year that I made for my roommates. Everyone loved them, so give 'em a try!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
15 oz. cooked pumpkin (I used canned)
1/3 cup apple sauce
1 cup brown sugar
2 1/4 cups flour
4 TBL baking powder
2 tsp water
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup vegan chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 375. Mix everything, then scoop onto greased cookie sheet (I used vegetable oil) and bake for 13-15 minutes.
And who else is stoked to eat TONS of mashed potatoes and vegan gravy on Thanksgiving? It's not just me, right?!
♥ Marta
