PETA's second letter to Safeway

January 2, 2001

Brian G. Dowling
Vice President, Public Affairs
Safeway, Inc.
5918 Stoneridge Mall Road
Pleasanton, CA 94588-3229

2 pages via fax: 626-821-7934

Dear Mr. Dowling:

I am disappointed that you have not returned any of the phone messages I have left for you during the past month. If we could talk, perhaps we could come to some resolution. PETA and our more than 700,000 members and supporters worldwide—including those in the United Kingdom, where PETA-Europe is based—are interested in knowing: Is Safeway taking any steps to meet or exceed McDonald's animal welfare standards?

We are left to surmise, from your November letter, that Safeway is doing nothing while animals continue to suffer at the hands of its suppliers. You wrote, "We require every Safeway supplier to meet all government safety and sanitation requirements, and to guarantee the safety, nutrition and wholesomeness of its products." Your concern about food safety is understandable: Every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control, tens of millions of Americans become seriously ill, and thousands die, from eating animal foods contaminated with salmonella, E. coli, and other bacteria.

But does Safeway also require its suppliers to comply with the Humane Slaughter Act—the one and only federal law that protects cows and pigs during slaughter? Perhaps you were unaware that the government has taken inspectors off slaughter lines, so the industry is left to police itself. The result: Slaughterhouse workers routinely beat, scald, skin, and dismember conscious animals; this behavior has been documented on video tape and in statements from line workers and retired USDA inspectors. We are seeking some assurance that Safeway cares about such atrocities and will now commit to follow McDonald's lead by auditing its suppliers to ensure that no animals suffer in such ways as they make their way into your freezer cases. Otherwise, you cannot know whether the cows and pigs you purchase come from suppliers that abuse animals and break the law.

Animal suffering does not start at the slaughterhouse, of course. On factory farms where animals are raised for Safeway, sows are confined to stalls barely bigger than their own bodies. Chickens, bred for weight, suffer from broken bones, leg deformities, and chronic leg pain. Their bones actually splinter from stress. At slaughter, many chickens are so poorly stunned before their throats are slit that they slowly bleed to death or go live into the scalding tanks. Kroger is contacting its suppliers about these acts of cruelty, all of which were outlined in PETA's letter of October 25—what is Safeway doing?

You wrote that Safeway does not feel "entitled or qualified" to dictate how its suppliers treat animals. This is a shameful position. It is absolutely your responsibility to determine what you are paying for, and to get qualified help making judgments if you lack expertise. We stand ready to help link you to internationally recognized experts in animal welfare and slaughtering. A 1996 USDA audit found that 70 percent of slaughterhouses were not even close to compliance with the Humane Slaughter Act. After PETA launched a full-scale campaign against McDonald's, the company asked Dr. Temple Grandin, America's foremost expert on slaughterhouse practices, to develop an auditing system for its suppliers. McDonald's demanded improvements of noncompliant slaughterhouses and began severing ties with those that failed audits. Dr. Grandin said that, following McDonald's involvement, she saw more improvement in slaughter practices in six months than she had in 25 years. Change will not come unless companies such as yours demand it. If you fail to take action, you guarantee that animals will continue to suffer.

McDonald's will gladly share details of its improvements and monitoring systems with you. Dr. Grandin, head of McDonald's animal welfare council, is currently working with Burger King to institute an auditing system; I am sure she would lend Safeway her expertise. She can be reached at 970-229-0703. Additionally, Dr. Steven Jay Gross, a business consultant from Chicago who was involved in PETA's negotiations with McDonald's, is at your disposal to help develop a plan of action. He can be reached at 815-334-9442. We recommend that Safeway follow McDonald's, and now other companies', lead by forming an animal welfare council, with individuals from both inside and outside the industry, to guide its decision-making process. Dr. Joy Mench, a professor of animal science at the University of California-Davis, and Diane Halverson of the Animal Welfare Institute both served on McDonald's council and would be great assets to Safeway.

PETA wishes to make its position clear: We are happy and willing and anxious to work with Safeway on this issue, but your letter does not indicate that you are yet commited to doing anything substantive to stop the suffering of animals raised and killed for your stores. Giving suppliers a list of PETA's concerns, while a nice gesture, accomplishes nothing. The industry won't improve without incentive. We experienced the same foot-dragging by McDonald's a year ago and were forced to launch an international campaign against it, with graphic advertisements and billboards and more than 400 demonstrations. PETA is prepared to launch similar campaigns against other companies in the food industry that refuse to meet or exceed the standards set by McDonald's. We hope it doesn't come to that, and that you will work with us to alleviate some of the suffering that animals endure for Safeway stores. We would rather be allies in social improvement, than enemies.

Sincerely,

Sean M. Gifford
Vegetarian Campaign Coordinator

cc Dr. Steven J. Gross, Humane PAC
Dr. Temple Grandin, University of Colorado