Animal Equality Campaign Calls Out Meal Kit Company Cruelty

Animal Equality Exposes Misleading Claims By Major Meal Kit Companies.

Animal Equality has launched a campaign today targeting 3 meal service companies for their lack of a public commitment to higher animal welfare in their chicken supply chains.

The companies, which include Gobble, Yumble, and Home Chef, have all either refused to disclose any chicken welfare policy they may have, or whose standards do not match up with what their customers would expect.

The campaign website, MealKitCruelty.com, showcases bloody logos and the public can vote for the worst meal kit company for animals. Petitions are included for each, calling on company executives to take animal welfare seriously by making a public commitment to higher animal protection standards that would reduce the suffering of potentially millions of chickens killed for their menu items.

Animal Equality’s Campaign Manager, Dane Charbeneau, says, “We’re worried that these companies may be misleading consumers into purchasing their meal kits when they otherwise might have sought a more humane alternative. It’s time for Gobble, Yumble, and Home Chef to stop hiding behind misleading marketing claims and adopt a meaningful chicken welfare policy.”

With typical chicken farming:

• chickens 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 dim, windowless sheds unable to perform natural behaviors;
• chickens are forced to live in their own waste with ammonia levels so concentrated that many suffer from painful chemical burns;
• birds at the slaughterhouse are violently shackled upside down and their throats are then slit, often while they’re still conscious.

Over the last few years, more than 200 brands have responded to consumer concerns and made commitments to improve chicken welfare by adopting a set of standards deemed the Better Chicken Commitment. Several meal kit companies including Blue Apron, HelloFresh, and Sun Basket have signed on to the policy as well as top companies such as Burger King, Subway, and Popeyes. It’s time these companies did the same – for their customers and animals trapped inside their supply chains.

Since more people are cooking at home during the pandemic, sales have remained strong and have continued to grow for meal kit services. That is why now is the time to push these companies so that animal welfare is an integral part of their business strategy.

To learn more and take action, visit MealKitCruelty.com.