On July 5, 2001, PETA writes for clarification, suggesting that Wendy's is not doing what McDonald's and Burger King are doing.

July 5, 2001

Jack Schuessler, CEO
Wendy's International, Inc.
4288 W. Dublin-Granville Rd.
Dublin, OH 43017

Dear Mr. Schuessler:

Last November, I wrote to you on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and our more than 700,000 members and supporters (letter attached). When I called, I was told that our concerns had been delegated to Mr. Denny Lynch, so PETA followed up with eight phone calls to Mr. Lynch in the month after the letter was sent. They were not returned.

In January, PETA decided to focus our attention on Burger King, and Wendy's fell off our immediate radar screen. Meanwhile, PETA has had encouraging contact with Tricon Global Restaurants, parent company of KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut, which has pledged to work with PETA and animal welfare experts to improve conditions for animals raised for its restaurants.

On June 28, PETA ended its campaign against Burger King when the corporation announced important animal welfare requirements with which its suppliers must now comply (Burger King press release attached). At Dr. Temple Grandin's suggestion, and despite the fact that our repeated attempts to work with Wendy's had been ignored, I placed a call to Mr. Dennis Hecker, head of quality control at Wendy's, to see if we could bring Wendy's on board with McDonald's and Burger King. His secretary (Pam) told me he was available, but he immediately became unavailable after I identified myself. I left word that I urgently wished to speak with him. My call was not returned.

On July 3, PETA held a demonstration at a Virginia Wendy's restaurant. It was an opening volley in what we hope, and we trust you have the business sense to hope, will not have to be a full-blown campaign.

In response to media inquiries, Mr. Denny Lynch has made a variety of statements that, if true and put in writing, would guarantee that PETA will leave Wendy's in peace. If Mr. Lynch's statements are inaccurate, however, Wendy's may be legally responsible for lying to millions of people around the world and, as you know, caring consumers can be litigious.

On July 3, Mr. Lynch told Reuters that "our animal welfare guidelines equal or exceed those of McDonald's and Burger King," told United Press International that "our animal welfare standards actually … meet guidelines announced recently by McDonald's and Burger King in response to PETA," and told CNS News that, "The animal welfare guidelines that McDonald's and Burger King have announced … are the same guidelines we have."

It is PETA's understanding, in contrast to Mr. Lynch's statements, that Wendy's has done nothing regarding abusive chicken slaughter, abusive farm standards for cows, pigs, or chickens, or transportation abuse of cows, pigs, or chickens. If this is so, it means that while Burger King and McDonald's are auditing chicken houses to eliminate some of the most egregious abuses, by failing to audit chicken slaughter, Wendy's chickens may still be conscious as their throats are slit and they are scalded alive. It means that while Burger King and McDonald's refuse to buy from suppliers that debeak hens, cram seven or eight hens into tiny cages, starve hens to shock them into another laying cycle, and so on, Wendy's refuses to take action; and it means that, while Burger King and McDonald's address an array of other issues related to the farm and transportation welfare of animals, Wendy's is doing nothing in this area, either.

For your information, both Jack Greenberg, CEO of McDonald's, and John Dasburg, CEO of Burger King, have taken a personal interest in animal welfare issues and have spoken out on the issue repeatedly. Were you to do the same and to assure PETA that Wendy's will adopt or exceed the animal welfare plan issued by Burger King on June 28, PETA will drop the designer work on our anti-Wendy's materials, drop the activist alerts, drop the upcoming "Adopt a Wendy's" Campaign, and much more. But we need to hear from you.

Clearly, Wendy's efforts with regard to cows and pigs in slaughterhouses are laudable, and PETA's hope is that Wendy's will understand that such attention must immediately be given to the enormous degree of suffering endured by chickens in slaughterhouses, as well as to farm and transportation animal abuse. We are happy to work with any corporation, but we will fight any corporation with hammer and tongs if the animals' interests are ignored. Please make the sane choice.

Sincerely,

Bruce G. Friedrich
Vegan Campaign Coordinator

cc: Dr. Temple Grandin
Dr. Steven Gross
Denny Lynch, Wendy's