WASHINGTON – The Humane Society of the United States said today
that the plight of over a million chickens left to starve when
one of the nation’s top egg producers went bankrupt
demonstrates problems inherent with the factory system that
supplies the majority of eggs sold in the United States.
The magnitude of the problem is staggering. One Cypress
Foods facility in Pasco County, Fla. contained about 225, 000
chickens. The company’s Georgia factories had an estimated 1.5
million hens. All of the animals were left to starve after the
company declared bankruptcy in early January and a judge
initially refused to free any of the Tampa-based company’s
assets to provide food for the birds. An estimated 20,000
starved to death in Florida before state agriculture officials
stepped in. Some hens have been sold to other producers and
some have been killed. Many more remain in the factory
farms.
“Most factory farms operate on very slim profit margins and
are themselves only one or two steps away from the situation at
Cypress Foods. Few have contingency plans for animal care in
the event of disaster,” said Michael Appleby, HSUS vice
president for farm animals and sustainable agriculture. Dr.
Appleby has over 20 years experience researching housing and
welfare issues of chickens. He designed an alternative to the
traditional battery cage commonly used to house laying hens.
“Battery cages that don’t provide enough room for these birds
to comfortably move around or display any of their natural
behaviors are only the beginning of the problem. Natural
disasters, power outages and heat waves have all caused the
deaths of millions of animals in factory farms. The real
responsibility lies with the producers who raise animals in
this manner, the government officials who sanction and
subsidize these inhumane systems, and the consumers who
unknowingly purchase animal products based on price alone.”
And while the plight of these birds is receiving the
attention of veterinarians, agriculture officials and law
enforcement officers who are considering pressing animal
cruelty charges, The HSUS says that starving egg-laying hens
for 10 days or even longer is actually standard industry
practice. Through a process called “forced molting,” hens are
deprived of food for up to 14 days in order to induce a loss
and re-growth of feathers for the purpose of increasing or
extending egg production.
Some agriculture experts are taking a critical look at
forced molting because of the increased occurrence of
salmonella associated with eggs from these hens. The HSUS is
working at the state and federal level to reform this practice.
“Public health concerns are motivating policy makers to look
closely at forced molting,” said Wayne Pacelle, HSUS senior
vice president.
