Minimum criteria for health and welfare
Undercover footage reveals the horrendous suffering of chickens sold at Lidl. Sign the petition and demand Lidl raise its welfare standards.
Sick. Injured. Filthy. Unable to move. Dead. This is not a scene from a horror movie. These are just some of the horrifying findings of a new undercover investigation into Lidl’s chicken farms. Lidl’s motto is “You deserve to be surprised”. The reality couldn’t be further from the truth.
As one of Europe’s largest supermarkets, Lidl has the power to end the suffering of millions of chickens in its supply chain. By signing the European Chicken Commitment, Lidl can eliminate some of the cruellest practices that chickens raised for meat endure. Over 340 companies in Europe and the UK, including Lidl France, have pledged to give chickens a better life.
What the investigators found
Filthy conditions – Forced to lie in the constant accumulation of faeces from thousands of birds, damp litter causes burns and lesions on the skin and acts as a pool of disease.
Painful lesions and deformities – The Frank Chickens’ body can’t physically cope with its unnaturally fast growth rate. The bones are highly susceptible to fractures, breaks and dislocations, preventing some birds from even being able to stand upright.
Dying or already dead chickens – There are many causes of premature death in Frankenchickens, one of the most common related to heart and circulatory problems. The stress these huge bodies impose on a young heart means heart failure is all too common.
Background to the investigation
Recent investigative footage from a German farm owned by Lidl supplier Rothkötter reveals how so-called ‘broiler chickens’ suffer for Lidl. They have been selectively bred to grow unnaturally fast – the aim is to produce as much meat as possible in the shortest possible time. These chickens barely manage to stand upright in pain, and in the worst cases, their organs fail. Often unable to walk, they are forced to lie in their own faeces.
To put an end to this cruelty and to fundamentally improve the welfare of chickens that are bred for food, European animal welfare organisations have developed the European Chicken Commitment, which sets a new minimum animal welfare standard. More than 500 companies worldwide have already signed up, including Nestlé, Unilever, Ikea, Domino’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken, as well as all French supermarkets. By implementing this commitment, it is estimated that two thirds of the worst pain of the average broiler chicken can be avoided.
In Germany, Aldi was the first German supermarket to join the European Chicken Commitment. Also on board are Bünting, Globus, Tegut, and Norma. All will set higher animal welfare requirements for all their private label brands by 2026.
Lidl and the rest of the German supermarket groups plan to extend the range from levels 3 and 4 of their unscientific “growth form” system over the same period. This system neglects overbreeding and thus omits the biggest problem. In addition, 80% of the chicks will continue to live in the actual conditions you see in the barn footage afterwards, remaining trapped in a body that will cause them lifelong pain.
Do you agree that these things are wrong? Then add your signature now and let those in charge at Lidl know!