PETA's KFC campaign ruffles feathers

PETA's campaign against KFC (see http://www.KentuckyFriedCruelty.com) is on the front page of the Saturday, August 6, Chicago Tribune. The article is headed "PETA ruffles feathers. Graphic protests aimed at customers haven't pushed KFC to change suppliers' slaughterhouse rules."

We read about successful PETA campaigns against other companies, which led to changes in animal welfare standards, and then:
"What makes the KFC campaign unique is that the chicken chain has refused to submit to PETA's demands, which include stopping the use of growth-enhancing antibiotics and using gas, rather than electric shocks and sharp knives, to kill chickens. As a result, company executives have been doused with fake blood, criticized by the likes of Pamela Anderson, Al Sharpton and the Dalai Lama, and continually subjected to the circuslike atmosphere of PETA protests at its restaurants."

We learn that KFC company officials, asked to comment on PETA's campaign, "refer to the animal-welfare guidelines available on the company's Web site." However, "the Web site does not mention that several members of the advisory council, formed in late 2000, quit in frustration because of the lack of progress and because they had to sign a strict confidentiality agreement."

Richard Berman, from Consumer Freedom, is quoted, saying "I think PETA is largely seen as being a somewhat bizarre organization."
The irony is that Consumer Freedom spends most its time and millions of dollars fighting PETA, so one has to take his dismissive comments with more than a grain of salt.

The article explains PETA's demands of KFC:

"Most chickens in the United States are killed in the same manner, whether sold by KFC, McDonald's or a local grocery. They are hung upside down, knocked unconscious with an electrical stunner, slashed across the throat with a knife and then dunked into a tub of boiling water to remove their feathers. The Humane Slaughter Act, passed by Congress in 1958, dictates that livestock must be unconscious before the fatal blow is delivered. However, for reasons that remain unclear, chickens were exempted from the act. PETA alleges that many chickens still are conscious when their throats are slashed or when they are dunked in the boiling water. In a graphic undercover video that PETA says it shot last year at a KFC supplier in West Virginia, slaughterhouse workers are shown slamming chickens against a wall and stomping on them.
Using gas, rather than electric shocks, would ensure that all the chickens are dead before a worker touches them, PETA says."

There is a nice quote from Temple Grandin about PETA's impact on the fast food business: "The way I look at it is, heat softens steel. And when steel is soft, you can bend that steel into constructive shapes."

The article ends with an unfortunate quote from a 9-year-old passerby, "When there's world peace, we can worry about chickens."

One doesn't have to eat KFC while working on peace campaigns. In fact, there is a huge overlap between the social justice movements, and there are a lot of vegetarians amongst those actually working for world peace.

You'll can read the full article on line at:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0508060070aug06,1,3016639.story?coll=chi-news-hed OR http://tinyurl.com/886j9

It is no secret that PETA would rather people gave up chicken altogether. This story on PETA's attempts just to ease some of the worst of the suffering gives us a great platform for letters to the editor reminding people that a plant based diet is a terrific option.
The Chicago Tribune takes letters at:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/letters/chi-lettertotheeditor.customform OR http://tinyurl.com/4lsug

(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. If you forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts, please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)