breed
Modern chickens are bred to grow so large, so quickly that their legs and organs cannot keep up. Heart attacks, organ failure, and crippling leg deformities are a common result. Many birds die from not being able to reach their food or water.
David and Joanna founded Yumble, a pre-packaged meal delivery company for kids, in 2015. The couple says they created Yumble so families can spend more time together and to have an easier way for parents to get foods they’re proud to serve. But what would the parents and kids think if they knew the truth?
On traditional farms, chickens live a life of pure misery. They are bred to grow at an alarmingly unnatural rate, which causes leg deformities, organ failure, and heart attacks in these baby birds. Each flock, which consists of tens of thousands of birds, are kept in dirty, windowless sheds. They are forced to live in their own waste with ammonia levels so concentrated that many suffer from painful chemical burns. When these birds are brought to slaughter, they are violently shackled upside down. Their throats are then slit, often while they’re still conscious.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Over 200 brands in the United States have adopted the Better Chicken Commitment, a comprehensive set of welfare reforms that address the worst abuses suffered by chickens on today’s farms. Even Yumble’s competitors, including Blue Apron, HelloFresh, and Sun Basket, have stepped up and put an end to the most horrific practices.
David and Joanna have the power and responsibility to address the chicken cruelty allowed in Yumble’s supply chain. Please join us in calling on them to eliminate the worst abuses for animals by publicly committing to higher chicken welfare.
Housing
As standard industry practice, chickens are forced to live in a completely barren environment. Because there is no set standard for cleaning the substrate on which they live, ammonia from the urine and feces covers the floor and causes burns on the chickens’ bellies and feet. They are subjected to near-constant, low-intensity artificial lighting with short periods of continuous darkness and virtually no stimulating resources or ability to perform natural behaviors such as nesting, perching, and foraging.
Space
Most chickens spend their entire lives packed in sheds with tens of thousands of other birds. Such poor stocking density leads to numerous welfare issues, especially when coupled with low cleanliness standards. When chickens are crammed so tightly together, mobility is decreased because birds have inadequate room to move and the litter becomes soiled very quickly.
Slaughter
The birds who survive the terrible conditions at the farm are shipped to the slaughterhouse where they endure a horrifying death. Workers shackle the terrified birds upside down by their legs, and because the slaughter process moves so quickly, many birds aren’t properly stunned. This means that they’re often conscious when their throats are slit and are scalded to death when they reach the scalding tanks.
