Pig in a factory farm
YOU CAN END FACTORY FARMING
Protect animals from cruelty

Add your voice against animal cruelty

How many animals are in factory farms in the United States?


Over 23 million land animals are killed in the US every day

Every year approximately 72 billion land animals are killed for food globally. The US kills about 10 billion land animals a year, of which over 9 billion are chickens. Here is a breakdown of the number of farmed animals killed every year in the United States:

  • 9,300,000,000 chickens
  • 3,800,000,000 fishes
  • 214,000,000 turkeys
  • 124,000,000 pigs
  • 33,000,000 cows
  • 23,000,000 ducks

Did you know that you can help protect animals like cows, pigs and chickens with one simple action? By reducing or eliminating animal food products and replacing them with plant-based proteins, you are taking a stand for animals at every meal.

Factory farming in numbers


72%
Hens In Battery Cages in the U.S.
30
Hours Hens Suffer for One Egg in the U.S.
250 million
Male Chicks Killed Every Year in the U.S.
9.3 million
Cows Used for Milk in the U.S.
99%
Meat Comes From Factory Farms
50%
Medically Important Antibiotics Given to Farmed Animals

Animal Equality's work to End Factory Farming


817+
Facilities Investigated
1,589
Stories Generated in Media in 2023
22,588,732
Media Views in 2023
10,061
Hours of Volunteer Work in 2023
131,267
Volunteers Around The World
129.39 thousand
People Have Taken Action to End Animal Abuse
67
Campaigns Won
8
Successful Prosecutions of Workers for Cruelty to Animals
4
Facilities Closed Thanks to Animal Equality
608.92 million
Estimated Hens and Chickens Helped
1.28 million
Animals Helped by our Investigations in 2023
23.55 million
Animals Helped by our Corporate Work in 2023
9.21+ million
Animals Impacted by Our Legal Initiatives
3.7
Animals Helped for Every Dollar

Selected Media coverage


BBC
United Kingdom - February 15, 2022

Undercover Footage Reveals Evidence of Animal Abuse on Farm

An Animal Equality undercover investigation inside Madox Farm, a dairy farm in Carmarthenshire, South Wales revealed workers kicking and punching cows in the face and stomach, twisting their tails, and hitting them with sharp metal shovels. The footage aired on BBC One’s Panorama, and was seen by millions of viewers. Animal Equality is calling for the farm to be prosecuted and held accountable for its crimes.

The Guardian
United Kingdom - November 23, 2021

No Routine Checkups on Welfare of Fish at Slaughter, Officials Admit

Animal Equality’s undercover footage has revealed animals suffering from prolonged pain in a Scottish Salmon Company slaughterhouse. The investigation, showing fish-killing processes, is the first of its kind to be released in the UK. Currently, monitoring and inspections of fish slaughterhouses are clearly inadequate, resulting in aquatic animals suffering extreme and prolonged suffering.

NBC News
United States - August 15, 2021

Is a Catfish Farm Abusing Its Fish? An Animal Rights Group Says Yes

Animal Equality investigated Simmons Farm Raised Catfish slaughterhouse, located in Yazoo City, Mississippi. Simmons is one of the largest USDA inspected catfish slaughterhouses in the U.S., supplying grocery stores Kroger, Save a Lot, and Piggly Wiggly, as well as restaurant chains Cracker Barrel and Captain D’s. Numerous instances of animal abuse and suffering were found—incidents that are in violation of existing state animal cruelty laws. 

The New York Times
United States - July 6, 2017

Animal Welfare Groups Have a New Tool: Virtual Reality

The New York Times describes how virtual reality can be used to bring its viewers inside places they may not otherwise get to travel. For animal activists, this tool can show, first-hand, what animals go through inside the hidden walls of factory farms. 

In Support of Animals


Joaquin Phoenix with Animal Equality
“When you witness the horror that really happens behind closed doors and slaughterhouses to farm animals all over the world, it’s impossible not to be affected by it and to realize that we have to do something drastic to stop it.”

Joaquin Phoenix
Activist and Actor
Sharon Núñez
“Animal Equality has been working for over 15 years to end cruelty to farmed animals; through our investigations, educational work, and efforts with companies and legislators, we have impacted hundreds of millions of animals worldwide. We are committed to creating a world where factory farming belongs to history.”

Sharon Núñez
President of Animal Equality