sustainability | Eat the Earth

Every so often an email from the Chicken Out! Team pops into my inbox. Yesterday, I received an email telling me that ’2 out of 3 farm animals on the planet are factory farmed.’ How shocking is that?!

I didn’t realise that the world was in such a bad state when it came to factory farming. I guess I assumed that many countries still have strong rural farming practices, that don’t involve mass scale production.

Although on one hand it is terribly depressing to hear such a shocking statistic, I am thankful to campaigns such as Chicken Out! for keeping me well-informed.

My mom has supported Compassion in World Farming for a long time, and along with the Chicken Out! Team they have recently held the 2010 ‘Good Farm Animal Welfare’ Awards.

Following the link to their website I discover that the likes of Waitrose, the Co-op and Sainsbury’s were all ‘Good Chicken Award’ winners – it’s nice to know that some of the ‘big boys’ have a commitment to changing the welfare of the much maligned chicken.

Here’s a great video to tell you more about what Compassion in World Farming are doing:

You can also find an incredible online photography exhibition depicting the lives of farm animals across the world (from a content sheep on a smallholding in India to battery calves in New York state): Focus on Farm Animals.

And if you’d like to sign up for the Chicken Out! e-newsletter you can find details here.

All images: from Chicken Out! and Compassion in World Farming