November 19th, 2011
05:37 PM ET

McDonald's, Target drop egg supplier after animal cruelty report

McDonald's and Target dropped an egg supplier this week after an activist group released disturbing video showing what it says shows animal cruelty at three of the company's barns.

The undercover video, released by Mercy for Animals, was allegedly shot between May and August at facilities run by Sparboe Farms in Colorado, Iowa and Minnesota. It shows hens crammed in crowded cages, workers burning beaks and one, trying to shove a bird inside the pocket of a co-worker, apparently for fun. Another worker presses his thumb against the back of a chick's neck until it breaks.

"Regarding the undercover videos, the behavior on tape is disturbing and completely unacceptable. McDonald's wants to assure our customers that we demand humane treatment of animals by our suppliers. We take this responsibility - along with our customers' trust - very seriously. It's important to note that the most alarming actions on video did not occur at Sparboe's Vincent, Iowa, facility that supplies McDonald's. Nonetheless, our extremely high standards for our suppliers prohibit this conduct," McDonald's said in a statement, announcing its decision to cut ties with Sparboe Farms.

Target similarly said it was dropping Sparboe Farms, which describes itself as the fifth-largest shell egg producer and marketer in the United States.

FULL STORY
Post by:
Filed under: Animals • Colorado • Fast Food • Food • Iowa • Minnesota
soundoff (68 Responses)
  1. gung hoe

    @banasy well ILL be gosh darned banasy I cant speak but a couple words of french.Dont know how that bit about french fry came out Ironic ha! @frenchy mmmm fry witty long penis thats cool thanks

    November 19, 2011 at 8:53 pm | Report abuse |
  2. chrissy

    lmmfao now u did it mmmmm somehow HE got long penus outta that! and the monster is born!

    November 19, 2011 at 9:08 pm | Report abuse |
  3. gung hoe

    Do you people realize that they have to kill the chickens when they are 6 months old, because the growth hormones if they are allowed to get older their legs cant support themselves.Now if your wondering why our kids are so much bigger, look at the growth hormones in our food like chicken.If your wondering why our joints are not meant to carry the load they are given because of the hormones in our food such as tomatoes eggs meats

    November 19, 2011 at 9:08 pm | Report abuse |
  4. gung hoe

    @chrissey grrahg grrroll hm me mr long grrrol penis ooohhi yaaa

    November 19, 2011 at 9:13 pm | Report abuse |
  5. fernace

    This is a small step in the right direction, but I can't help wondering if Target is equally adimant about work conditions for employees in nations that manufacture their products! Sweat shops are horrific work places, as we all know & while I'm all for the ethical treatment of animals, I think we have to remember the people in China & India working for pennies on the dollar in hideous work conditions! Target should look into that if they want to be precieved as an ethical company!!

    November 19, 2011 at 9:22 pm | Report abuse |
  6. INCREDIBLE EGG

    STOP OVERCROWDING CAGED EGGS & CRUELTY TREATMENT TO FARM ANIMALS

    November 19, 2011 at 9:46 pm | Report abuse |
  7. banasy©

    Extremely good point, fernace!
    Hi, how are you?

    November 19, 2011 at 9:55 pm | Report abuse |
  8. chrissy

    lmmfao @ gung hoe! too freakin funny! hey fernace how are you?

    November 19, 2011 at 10:01 pm | Report abuse |
  9. bigwilliestyles

    We imprison them, take away their young, kill them, dismember some of them cook them (also boil, fry, scramble etc their children) and EAT them; but we should do this 'humanely'?

    November 19, 2011 at 11:35 pm | Report abuse |
  10. banasy©

    @bigwilliestyles:

    Ah, there lies the conundrum.

    November 19, 2011 at 11:44 pm | Report abuse |
  11. Toxins

    I always have been strongly against factory farming. Not only is it inhumane, but it spreads diseases, like salmonella and e coli easily. Salmonella, the leading cause of food-poisoning related death, can survive most common egg cooking methods including scrambled, over-easy, and sunny-side-up. Cross-contamination onto fingers, utensils, or kitchen surfaces may pose an additional threat.
    Check it out on this science based, non commercial website
    http://nutritionfacts.org/videos/total-recall/

    November 19, 2011 at 11:55 pm | Report abuse |
  12. bobcat (in a hat)

    Does this mean the price of my eg mcmuffin is going up again ?

    Oh, and bigwillie, you forgot to mention BBQ chicken.
    And people talking about the cruelty to these chickens. Do they not realize they are eating unborn chickens when they eat eggs ?

    November 19, 2011 at 11:58 pm | Report abuse |
  13. banasy©

    OMG, bc(iah), you're kidding? Unborn chickens? I never knew that! Yuck!
    [/sarcasm]

    Sorry.
    Couldn't resist.
    I'm of to the land of nod.
    As JIF said, "Je suis un potiron maintenant."
    Night, all.

    November 20, 2011 at 12:09 am | Report abuse |
  14. bigwilliestyles

    Oh, and at the risk of incurring the wrath of my brethren, I am a FANATIC for chicken. Fried, Baked, Stewed (with carrots and potatoes, or over rice, BBQ (@ Bobcat), chicken salad, chicken soup, why I'd even eat a 'Chicken Lip sandwich'. So no, I'm not a vegan. I just wonder about the contradiction in humane food production.

    November 20, 2011 at 12:11 am | Report abuse |
  15. **cosmicvox *

    A decent life and a quik death is not abuse. We are Omnivores and need a certain amount of meat. Not as much as most people think however.

    November 20, 2011 at 1:01 am | Report abuse |
1 2 3 4
« Back to main