National Campaign Exposes the Truth Behind McDonald's Chicken

(Chicago, IL - March 27, 2018): The Humane League is launching its monumental campaign against McDonald’s as part of a nationwide effort to convince the fast-food giant to produce a comprehensive policy to address the basic welfare for the chickens in its supply chain. Among other important welfare issues, more thoroughly described in The Truth Behind Chicken McNuggets reference guide, the “I’m Not Lovin’ It” campaign highlights the fast food chain’s failure to address the practice of selectively-breeding chickens to grow unnaturally large at a rapid rate, approximately six times faster than chickens grow naturally.

The Humane League is announcing its largest campaign in history with plans to lead hard-hitting on-the-ground actions this week near McDonald’s Chicago headquarters, including:

• An eye-catching demonstration with dozens of protesters, mobile billboards, 6 x 10 foot ‘Unhappy Meal’ art piece, banners, Ronald McDonald and chicken characters, and more on Wednesday, March 28 from 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. in the heart of Chicago (23 S. Clark St.)
  
  
• A larger than life UnHappy Meal art installation will tour Chicago from March 27-29; will be stationed with virtual reality provided by Animal Equality and 3-D tabling event on Thursday from 11 am - 2 pm in Wicker Park (1560 N Damen Ave)
  
  
• A community launch party alongside vibrant stunts on Thursday from 7-9 p.m. at Revolution Brewing (3340 N. Kedzie Ave.)
  
  
• Dozens of ads on benches, buildings, projections, and billboards throughout the city (can provide locations upon request)
  
  
• Ongoing public stunts and campaign videos

In addition, a full-page ad ran in the New York Times on Sunday, March 25 announcing a joint coalition effort from some of the nation’s largest nonprofits in their aligned ask for McDonald’s to commit to welfare reforms for the chickens in its supply chain. The coalition of animal protection groups, including The Humane League, Animal Equality, Compassion in World Farming, Compassion Over Killing, Mercy For Animals, and World Animal Protection, have united to ask McDonald's to implement higher, science-based animal welfare standards for its chicken supply chain by switching to healthier breeds of birds, providing more room for the chickens to move, monitoring air and litter quality, and providing environmental enrichments. More information can be found at the coalition's website.

Nationally, The Humane League will also lead social media actions, outreach to corporate partners, mobilizing hundreds of students on university campuses and thousands of volunteers nationwide, as well as additional strategic actions from coast to coast. These actions are fueled by The Humane League staff, volunteers, advocates, and Fast Action Network, an online platform curated by The Humane League that includes over 7,500 members. For more background and live updates about the campaign, visit ImNotLovinIt.com and follow on social media with the hashtag #imnotlovinit

“The Humane League is launching our biggest campaign yet, a national effort addressing the outrageous treatment of animals on the farms supplying McDonald’s chicken. We’re starting with a relentless week of actions in their home city,” said David Coman-Hidy, President of The Humane League. “McDonald’s failure to address this animal cruelty is in stark contrast to the nearly 100 major companies that have signed on to meaningful reform. As one of the most influential companies in the world, a new policy from McDonald’s will lead to widespread changes in the American chicken industry, dramatically reducing the suffering of billions of chickens annually.”

In October of 2017, after several months of dialogue and increasing pressure from The Humane League and other coalition organizations, McDonald’s issued a public chicken welfare policy. However, unlike the commitments from McDonald’s competitors, this policy fails to meaningfully address several important welfare issues and instead misleads the public.

The Humane League’s campaign demands that McDonald’s transition to higher welfare chickens approved by Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) or Global Animal Partnership (GAP) standards, reduce stocking density, and provide birds enriched environments per GAP standards. More information about the proposed policy in comparison to McDonald’s current chicken welfare policy can be found here.

The Humane League has worked with McDonald’s competitors, including Burger King, Subway, Jack in the Box, Sonic, and nearly 100 other major food companies, to establish timelines for their chicken suppliers to implement these precise reforms by 2024. Other fast-food companies, food service providers, CPG companies and even producers have committed to transitioning to strains of birds with improved welfare outcomes accepted for use by RSPCA or GAP.

About The Humane League Since its founding in 2005, The Humane League has applied a grassroots-focused and results-driven approach to securing welfare policies for the chicken and egg industries worldwide. One of the leading international farm animal protection nonprofits, The Humane League secured the first welfare policies for chickens raised for meat, following a groundbreaking campaign against Aramark and Compass Group. The organization has secured similar policies from over 80 food companies over the past year, improving the lives of hundreds of millions of chickens every year . The Humane League has also secured commitments to eliminate cages for laying hens from the supply chains of major foodservice providers, restaurants, food manufacturers, hospitality leaders, and other major companies, including global commitments from Compass, Sodexo, Aldi Nord, PepsiCo, Grupo Bimbo, Unilever, Carnival Cruises, and Starwood Hotels. In addition, The Humane League is responsible for United Egg Producers’ commitment to eliminate the culling of male chicks in the United States.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jennifer Barckley (917) 756-9177 jbarckley@thehumaneleague.org www.thehumaneleague.org