2020 Annual Report
To our supporters,
THANK YOU! You’ve made a world of difference for farmed animals in 2020. You have shown that kindness and compassion still matter, not despite, but especially during difficult times.
Together, we’ve accomplished so much amid the numerous challenges of this year. Although limited by travel restrictions brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, we released seven undercover investigations. And in an economic recession, our corporate outreach secured policy commitments from 19 companies that will impact nearly 12.4 million chickens raised for meat and eggs each year.
Our work on behalf of farmed animals would not be possible without our caring supporters. With your help, we are impacting the lives of hundreds of millions of farmed animals around the world this year, and every year.
Thank you so much for your belief in our work.
In gratitude,
Sharon Núñez
President, Animal Equality
Investigations
Animal Equality presented a number of undercover investigations exposing cruelty to animals used for meat in the UK and abroad.
UK
BABY CHICKS CRUELLY CAGED ON BRITISH EGG FARM
In October, Animal Equality released footage and images taken from an investigation into a caged-egg farm in West Sussex.
The farm – Kinswood Eggs – confines around 320,000 hens and produces a staggering 72 million eggs annually. The footage was collected over the course of three visits between June and September 2020.
Animal Equality’s investigators discovered:
- Hens forced to live in extremely overcrowded cages, with as many as 100 birds in a single cage – a clear violation of English animal welfare laws.
- Young, days-old chicks packed into empty, wire-floor cages.
- Hens suffering from severe feather loss, some nearly bald; others showing signs of hernias and red, raw skin.
- Decaying hen carcasses left in cages with living birds.
The investigation was featured in the Daily Mail, The Independent and on MSN news and reached millions of people.
UK
ABUSE FOUND AT KNOWN MCDONALD’S SUPPLIER
In August, Animal Equality released a two part investigation exposing devastating animal suffering on 12 chicken farms linked to the chicken producer, Moy Park. Moy Park is one of the UK’s biggest chicken producers and a supplier to Tesco grocery stores, as well as McDonald’s.
Our footage revealed:
- Birds purposefully crushed to death when not growing fast enough to be profitable.
- Conditions so crowded that the chickens could barely move, and painful ammonia burns on their bodies from urine-soaked litter.
- Small birds – deemed unprofitable by the industry – were deliberately deprived of water, in order to minimise cost.
Animal Equality filed a complaint letter to several UK agencies including RSPCA, APHA (DEFRA), and Red Tractor Assurance.
These are all standard practices in the meat industry. Our team is working on coalition-wide campaigns to convince Tesco and McDonald’s to agree to the “Better Chicken Commitment”, a policy that would eliminate some of the worst abuses of chickens raised for their meat.
Spain
TORMENT OF ANIMALS SHIPPED FOR SLAUGHTER
In May, Animal Equality released an investigation documenting the painful live transport of lambs from Spanish farms to the Middle East.
Our investigators exposed the following cruelties:
- Tens of thousands of lambs shipped hundreds of miles by truck to Spanish port cities and then forced to travel by sea, with journeys lasting up to 10 days.
- Workers throwing the animals and grabbing them by their legs to prevent them from retreating during travel.
- Lambs, less than a year old, slaughtered while fully conscious.
A complaint has been lodged with the Ministry of Agriculture about the irregularities committed and prohibited in the Regulation on the Transport of Animals in the European Union and they have confirmed that they will investigate further.
Spain
CHICKEN SUFFERING IN PUBLIC SPOTLIGHT
In June, Animal Equality in Spain visited the a chicken farm during different life stages of the chickens’ development, revealing the intense suffering behind their unnatural rapid growth and deplorable living conditions. We were accompanied by Ana Pardo de Vera, Chief Editor and award-winning journalist from Público, one of Spain’s most important media outlets. The investigation appeared on national TV and print and reached millions of people. Animal Equality exposed horrifying cruelties, including:
- Collapsed chickens unable to reach the feeders, dying of starvation.
- Chickens covered in ammonia burns due to accumulated faeces.
- Deplorable hygienic conditions, with chickens forced to live alongside dead ones.
Mexico
Enemy of the planet
In July, Animal Equality released an investigation documenting the environmental impact of pork production in Jalisco, Mexico. The short documentary, Enemy of the Planet, was produced using drones that flew over two industrial pig farms that house more than 89,000 pigs. This release is the first in a series of investigations that will inform about the impacts of factory farming on the environment. Key findings of the investigation include:
- High densities of greenhouse gases such as methane and Nitrous Oxide (N2O), a gas up to 300 times more powerful than CO2.
- Open-air discharges that cause particles to infiltrate the soil and affect fields, acidify soils, eutrophic water tables, and contaminate groundwater.
- Imminent ecological imbalance due to the damage caused to the soil, subsoil, and groundwater.
We have filed four legal complaints against these farms and released an environmental impact report outlining the ecological damage caused by the massive industrial animal agriculture in Jalisco, Mexico.
Public Awareness
UK
FACTORY FARMING PROTEST WITH JOAQUIN PHOENIX
Animal advocate and actor, Joaquin Phoenix, joined Animal Equality in an international protest against factory farming in advance of the 73rd BAFTA ceremony.
Alongside Animal Equality activists and staff, Joaquin dropped a 390 square-foot banner from the iconic Tower Bridge in London that read “Factory farming is destroying our planet. Go vegan.” as an urgent plea to the public to break its dependence on animal products. The demonstration received widespread media attention including on Sky News.
Corporate Outreach
Animal Equality convinced 19 companies worldwide to adopt animal protection policies that will reduce the suffering of more than 12.4 million chickens used for meat and eggs each year.
Legal Advocacy
UK & Brazil
Rainforest Consultation
Animal Equality submitted an official response to a UK Government consultation on deforestation, urging the Government to put in place strategies to reduce the consumption of animal products and support the growth of the plant-based food sector.
Alongside our colleagues in Animal Equality Brazil, we’re also calling for improved labelling on animal products linked to Amazonian deforestation, greater supply chain transparency, and stronger enforcement of laws related to agricultural deforestation. Beef production is a key driver of deforestation and Brazil is one of the world’s largest exporters.
USA
Aquatic Animal Alliance
Animal Equality joined the Aquatic Animal Alliance (AAA) to improve the fish welfare standards in various seafood certification programs. We are also working with a state aquaculture industry trade group in an attempt to collaborate on fish welfare legislation.
Animal Equality is participating in seven ongoing lawsuits in the U.S., including a constitutional challenge to Arkansas’ Ag-Gag law, two deceptive advertising lawsuits against Tyson Foods and Hormel, two lawsuits related to California’s Prevention of Cruelty to Farm Animals Act, and a lawsuit against the USDA seeking to strike down the agency’s new inhumane pig slaughter rule, which allows unlimited line speeds at pig slaughterhouses.
Most recently, Animal Equality filed a new false-advertising lawsuit against Champion Petfoods for falsely advertising its fish ingredients as “wild-caught” when all evidence suggests certain species are exclusively from large industrial fish farms.
Thank you!
We didn’t do this alone.
Thank you to our donors, volunteers and Animal Protectors for standing up for animals.
Animals need you now more than ever.
