This weekend, protests took place at 30 Lidl stores across the UK, led by a former chicken farm worker, Tomasz Herok, who exposed animal cruelty at a Lincolnshire farm. Demonstrations were seen in cities such as London, Bristol, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Penzance, to name a few.
Tomasz, who worked at the farm for two months last year, said: “I’m protesting because retailers like Lidl are not telling the truth. I saw things I wouldn’t want anybody to see – birds who were clearly run over simply because they got in the way of a forklift – dying and deformed birds tossed aside like rubbish – I don’t know how Lidl cannot be moved by these images.”
The footage showed chickens being run over and crushed to death, as well as major welfare problems and dying, deformed ‘Frankenchickens’ being thrown like waste into wheelbarrows. The farm manager confirmed that the chickens ‘go to Lidl.’
Animal welfare groups are now challenging Lidl to sign up to the Better Chicken Commitment (BCC), which is supported by the RSPCA and UK Government. The BCC prohibits the sale of fast growing Frankenchickens raised in overcrowded conditions, which are typical practices in Lidl’s chicken supply chain.
Connor Jackson, CEO & Co-founder of Open Cages, the organisation behind the protests, said: “Lidl is the largest chicken retailer in all of Europe. And with great power comes great responsibility. We are all tired of seeing these horrendous videos of animal cruelty. But if Lidl were to sign the Better Chicken Commitment, they would not only improve the lives of millions of animals: they would influence the entire future of this industry. But if Lidl doesn’t want to change, then we feel compelled to protest and inform British consumers about where Lidl’s chicken really come from.”
More than 400,000 people have signed a petition asking Lidl to adopt the BCC. Photos from the protests can be found at the provided link, which should be credited to the photographers in the image descriptions.
Derick is an experienced reporter having held multiple senior roles for large publishers across Europe. Specialist subjects include small business and financial emerging markets.