Dead and dying birds found in investigation of Dunkin Donuts supplier

September 21, 3:03 PMManchester Bird Watching ExaminerBrad Sylvester

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Remains of a chicken removed from cages at Michael Foods egg factory.

As a birdwatcher and nature lover, as well as a consumer of groceries, I feel compelled to speak out against the cruel and unsanitary conditions that have been uncovered at Michael Foods in Minnesota which supplies eggs to Dunkin Donuts restaurants among others. Michael Foods is one of the largest egg producers in the United States. Once you see the photos and videos of the conditions there, you may think twice about buying eggs in a grocery store or eating anything containing eggs at a restaurant ever again. After watching this video of the deplorable conditions inside this egg farm you will understand why eggs are one of the more common sources of hygiene related infectious diseases, like salmonella , in this country.

• Pictures of conditions inside an egg production facility provided by Compassion Over Killing

I’m generally a reasonable person when it comes to providing meat for the table. I’m not a vegetarian, although I do realize that most animals can feel pain just as we do. As an avid birdwatcher, I see birds capturing, killing and eating other birds. I see raptors hunting reptiles and small mammals. I see brown-headed cowbirds knocking the eggs of other birds out of their own nests so they can replace them with their eggs. The natural world is a cold hearted place, but every animal needs to eat, and so do we. Having said that, I do not grant carte blanche to animal cruelty for the sake of efficiency in the factory food production business. A quick, clean kill of an animal living in decent, healthy conditions is one thing, a life of torture from birth to death to knock a few pennies off the cost of supermarket meat and eggs is quite another.

Video and Pictures from an Undercover Investigation

The pictures in this slideshow, and the video below of the conditions inside the Michael Foods egg factory were taken in August of 2009. I call it an egg factory instead of a farm, because this facility bears no relationship to a real farm whatsoever. A group called Compassion over Killing placed an investigator in the factory as an employee. He was wired with video and audio recording equipment to get these pictures during the course of his work. The conditions at Michael Foods, which is by the way approved by the United Egg Producers, an industry backed inspection organization, go beyond ordinary treatment of food animals, by a long way.

A Source of Contagion

After watching the video of the unbelievable conditions of the Michael Foods egg production facility and reviewing the photographs, Dr. Buyukmihci, Emeritus Professor of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California, Davis, stated, “Dead chickens were left among the living for long periods of time. These bodies can be a source of contagion and compromise the health of the living chickens. There is no question, therefore, that the manner in which the chickens depicted in the video were treated was cruel by any normal definition of the word and violated norms of conduct with respect to animal welfare and veterinary care.” Yet Michael Foods is approved by the UEP; talk about letting the fox guard the henhouse.

Egg Hygiene at Great Risk

Dr. Ian Duncan of the Department of Animal and Poultry Science at the University of Guelph, “The carcasses are covered in feces, and are rotting. In some cases, the carcasses are actually disintegrating which suggests that the birds have been dead in the cages for well over a week. In many cases the carcasses are very difficult to remove from the cages. This suggests that the hens may have been trapped while still alive and had a slow lingering death because they could not reach the food or water.” He also stated that humans who eat the eggs from Michael Foods may be at risk, “The hygiene of the eggs in this unit is also at great risk since newly-laid eggs are rolling over rotting carcasses… In summary, this video shows laying hens being kept under very bad conditions in which they are suffering enormously. … In my opinion the general public would absolutely refuse to eat eggs from a unit such as this.” Fortunately for Michael Foods and places like Dunkin Donuts who buy their eggs from Michael Foods, the general public doesn’t know what kind of filth they are eating, or what kind of intolerable cruelty is being inflicting upon these birds so that a egg and sausage on a croissant can be offered up along with the donuts (which also have these same eggs in them, by the way).

Boycott Michael Foods and Dunkin Donuts?

I’m not calling for a boycott of Michael Foods or of Dunkin Donuts, if you are comfortable eating products made with eggs that have rolled over week-old decomposing carcasses, covered in feces, that’s your call. All I want to do with this article is make you aware of what you’re eating and the inhumane cruelty that your choice supports. Sure the eggs are cleaned up before they go into an egg carton for your local supermarket, but did you know that when an eggshell gets wet, it becomes more porous allowing germs and contaminants on the outside to pass through the shell and end up inside the egg? Maybe knowing this you’d prefer that your eggs not be washed off so nice and clean...

The conditions at this facility owned by one of the largest egg producers in the United States are not unique. These cages and this type of equipment are standard at many large factory egg production facilities. These chickens do not have enough room to stand up at all during their entire adult life, resulting in constant pain, chronic inflammatory conditions and disease.Here is another slideshow of a commercial turkey farm in South America which was infected with swine flu.

Dunkin Donuts Stands by Michael Foods’ Practices

By the way, so that you don’t think that there was no opportunity for Dunkin Donuts to defend itself from these allegations, here is their response when Compassion Over Killing informed them of the conditions at Michael Foods, their primary egg supplier. "We have established guidelines that meet or exceed industry standards to ensure the proper treatment of laying hens used for egg production. We purchase eggs from suppliers that support our corporate guidelines related to animal welfare and meet or exceed the United Egg Producers (UEP) guidelines. Thank you and have a great day." In other words, the conditions you see in the video and the photographs must therefore fall within the “corporate guidelines related to animal welfare” (and, we presume, the standard of hygiene and cleanliness of food items) established by Dunkin Donuts’ corporate offices. Those corporate offices, by the way, can be reached by telephone at (800) 859-5339 or at their Dunkin Donuts Facebook Fan Page.

United Egg Producers (UEP) Track Record of Dishonesty

Dunkin Donuts also cites that they use suppliers, like Michael Foods, who meet or exceed the United Egg Producers (UEP) guidelines. For those, apparently like Dunkin Donuts, who are unfamiliar with the track record of the UEP, consider the following list:

• 2003: Better Business Bureau (BBB) rules that UEP's "Animal Care Certified" is misleading consumers about animal welfare
• 2004, BBB upholds it ruling after an appeal by the UEP.
• 2005: The UEP fails to abide by the BBB's recommendations, and the case is referred to the Federal Trade Commission.
• 2006: The UEP is required to stop the use of the deceptive Animal Care Certified program.
• 2006: The UEP settles out of court for a hefty cash payment to settle false advertising claims brought by more than 16 State Attorneys General Offices.
• Present: The UEP is engaged in fighting class action lawsuits for illegal price fixing.

Yet, somehow, this organization is the one that food service chains like Dunkin Donuts look to help establish what are acceptable animal welfare and hygiene conditions for egg producers. Why companies continue to place their business reputation in the hands of this organization defies belief, unless we consider that most consumers will never know the sordid details anyway.

Healthy eggs from more humane sources

The next time you’re considering going out for breakfast or going to the grocery store, remember what you’ve seen and read here. Consider instead buying your eggs from a local farmer’s market, or even getting a couple of chickens to graze your backyard and supply you with clean fresh eggs. You’ll be safer from food-borne illness, making a statement to factory food production facilities like Michael Foods and the companies like Dunkin Donuts who buy from them, and perhaps most importantly, you’ll be helping to prevent chickens from living out their lives amid the cruel torture and intolerably inhumane conditions that you see in the video. As a birdwatcher, nature lover, and a compassionate human being, can you continue to support this industry?

Common egg and poultry terms

For more information on the actual industry applied meaning of the following terms visit this link at eggindustry.com.

List of Common Egg and Poultry terms and standards:
• Cage-Free
• Certified Humane
• United Egg Producers (UEP) Certified
• Certified Organic
• Free Range
• Fertile
• Free Roaming
• Omega-3 Enriched
• Natural
• Vegetarian Fed

Sources:
Eggindustry.com
Pictures and background information provided by Compassion Over Killing Media source kit provided for use upon request of the author. http://Cok.net

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