PETA's Letter to McDonald's After the McLibel Verdict

PETA letter to McDonald's after the McLibel verdict--spells out 5 areas where McDonald's was found to be cruel to animals

July 29, 1997

Mike Quinlan, Chief Executive Officer
McDonald's Corporation
1 Kroc Drive
Oak Brook, IL 60523

3 pages via fax: 630-623-7409

Dear Mr. Quinlan:

Last month, Chief Justice Roger Bell of the British High Court in London, ruled that McDonald's is "culpabl[y] responsib[le] for cruel practices" in the raising of broiler chickens, laying hens, and pigs. We ask, in light of this judgement, that McDonald's take the following six steps to reduce animal suffering:

1. Give chickens at least one and one-half square feet of living space, as recommended by the USDA.

Judge Bell states in his ruling, "keeping large numbers of chickens in close confinement inevitably leads to disease and is cruel" and "the high density is intentional and unnecessary...In my judgment it is cruel."

Intensively-reared chickens, such as those McDonald's uses in its sandwiches and salads, are crammed into crowded warehouses with tens of thousands of other birds. This overcrowding causes disease, suffocation, and heart attacks. McDonald's currently allows approximately .55 square feet per bird, which is not enough even to spread one wing. Even the USDA recommends 1.5 square feet.

2. Stop selling eggs from factory-farmed hens.

Judge Bell rules, "I conclude that the battery system as described to me is cruel in respect of the almost total restraint of the birds and the incidence of broken bones when they are taken for slaughter. In my judgment [McDonald's] are culpably responsible for this cruelty..."

In the "battery cage" system used by suppliers for McDonald's, four-to-seven birds are crammed into small wire mesh crates in buildings with tens of thousands of other birds. The birds are denied fresh air and are unable even to spread a wing or to touch solid ground. Hens are kept in constant light (22 hours per day) to promote laying.

3. Require improved standards for chicken transport and slaughter.

Judge Bell rules that catching and transporting chickens is often done "hurriedly and clumsily under pressure of time with the result that it has been cruel." He notes that almost one-third of hens suffer leg breaks when they are trucked to slaughter, and goes on to say that "I judge neck cutting while fully conscious to be cruel by modern standards."

Chickens are grabbed by their wings, which often break, smashed together into crates so small that the birds cannot stand upright, and are thrown onto the backs of trucks. Many die from heat exhaustion, freezing, or accidents during transport. Many more are not stunned before having their throats cut and thus are bled out or go into steam vats while fully conscious.

4. Stop using genetically altered birds that suffer from painful leg deformities.

Judge Bell states that "something between 7% to 31% of the birds have welfare compromised by leg problems as a result primarily of their genetic breeding...I can see no reason why at least 7% of broilers, and possibly more, should have to suffer from discomforting leg problems... In my judgment it involves cruelty."

The chickens McDonald's uses are genetically bred to grow so large, so fast, that their legs cannot bear their own weight. According to a report from Compassion in World Farming (U.K.), leg problems place broiler chickens in chronic pain for much of their short lives, and countless birds die of heart failure, lung infection, starvation, and dehydration as a result of genetic breeding.

5. Purchase pigs only from farms which provide their breeding sows with room to move around outdoors, and which do not confine them indoors in cement cells, unable to turn around.

Judge Bell notes in his ruling that "pigs are intelligent sociable animals and I have no doubt that keeping sows in dry sow stalls for extended periods is cruel."

Most breeding sows on U.S. farms spend their entire lives in cement cells, unable to turn around. They can never engage in normal behaviors, such as rooting, mud-bathing, pawing the earth, or playing. They don't see sunshine or breathe fresh air until they are loaded onto a truck for slaughter. Pregnant sows are often tethered to the front of the iron grills in their cells, unable even to be comfortable, nuzzle their babies, or make a birthing "nest."

6. Include a vegetarian burger at all McDonald's USA restaurants.

In his ruling, Judge Bell notes that McDonald's food is "high in fat (including saturated fat) and salt (sodium) and animal products," and that McDonald's "advertisements, promotions and booklets have pretended to [have] a positive nutritional benefit which McDonald's food, high in fat and saturated fat and animal products and sodium...did not match."

There are now more than 13 million vegetarians in the United States, and the number is growing rapidly. Also, 20 percent of Americans say they look for a restaurant that serves vegetarian items when they dine out, and about one-third of all Americans say they would order a meatless item if it were listed on a menu, according to a recent Gallup poll. One in four teens considers vegetarianism to be "in," and at least 12% shun all meat.

McDonald's restaurants in many European countries offer a vegetarian burger and vegetarian nuggets. We ask that McDonald's USA do the same. There is an endless variety of tasty, vegetarian burgers and faux chicken patties offered by U.S. companies such as Worthington, Wholesome and Hearty Foods, Inc., and others.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Bruce G. Friedrich
Vegetarian Campaign Coordinator