One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This archival content was originally written for and published on KPCC.org. Keep in mind that links and images may no longer work — and references may be outdated.
Burger King reissues a whopper of a decree, will use only cage-free animals by 2017
The fast food chain has reiterated a 2007 pledge to buy all its eggs and pork from cage-free suppliers, completing the transition by 2017.
(
Photo byHåkan Dahlström via Flickr Creative Commons
)
Listen
0:54
Burger King reissues a whopper of a decree, will use only cage-free animals by 2017
Burger King has reiterated its 2007 pledge to become a more merciful ruler by purchasing all its eggs and pork from cage-free suppliers by the year 2017.
His plastic-faced, paper-crowned highness uses hundreds of millions of eggs, and tens of millions of pounds of pork every year.
Most of the eggs come from chickens confined to tiny so-called “battery cages,” a condition critics have called inhumane. Meanwhile, sows are kept in small crates during pregnancy, with no room to move or even sit down.
But soon, all that will change. The fast food chain's restated pledge is an acknowledgement of a growing public desire for food that's produced humanely.
At least one major push in that direction came four years ago when California voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 2 -- a measure allowing California Health and Safety Code to prohibit veal crates, sow gestation crates, and battery cages.
All are forms of confinement that do not allow animals to turn, stretch, lie down or stand up.
Burger King is one of the first major chains to make the transition. According to the Humane Society, similar changes have been taking place at Subway, Wolfgang Puck and Unilever (which produces, among other things, Hellmann's Mayonnaise).
Sponsored message
A flame-broiled trailblazer, Burger King may be the largest fast-food chain to take the cage-free pledge, but look for others to follow. McDonalds and Wendys are talking about it.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
