This article first appeared on RTL.de
What's behind Lidl's chicken meat? The activists of the "Albert Schweitzer Foundation for our environment" got to the bottom of this question. With a frightening result. The undercover videos show "how broilers not only suffer from the conditions in which they are kept, but also from the consequences of the extreme growth they breed," according to a press release from the Albert Schweitzer Foundation.
In fact, the videos show broilers languishing in crowded, desolate coops. Due to the massive breeding, the animals have problems to stand on their feet. Bones and legs are not designed for this, many collapse under their own weight. Sick, dying, dead and decomposed animals can also be seen, which are apparently overlooked by the fattening farm employees. Hundreds of chickens die before they are slaughtered.
The animal rights activists are calling on Lidl to take responsibility for the conditions at its suppliers and to tackle the biggest problems of chicken fattening, above all torture.
The President of the Albert Schweitzer Foundation, Mahi Klosterhalfen, holds Lidl responsible, after all even competitors like Aldi - as once when delisting cage eggs - were the first German food retailer to commit to more animal welfare in chicken fattening. Other companies in the industry have followed suit. They will implement the animal welfare criteria of the broiler chicken initiative together with their suppliers.
Mahi Klosterhalfen: "Lidl's chicken meat from 'Stallhaltung Plus' comes from torture chickens from desolate mass stalls. This is confirmed by the research. Does Lidl imagine that under 'quality' and 'animal welfare'? We call on Lidl to take responsibility: Sit down the minimum standards of the European Broiler Chicken Initiative for all chickens!" The partner organization Equalia, which filmed the undercover material, has now also filed a criminal complaint with the Osnabrück public prosecutor's office.
We confront Lidl Germany with the allegations. The group does not deny the allegations and announced that they speak out "very clearly against animal cruelty". The allegations are taken very seriously, the conditions described are "unacceptable," said the discounter when asked by RTL.
The company's statement goes on to say: "In order to pursue this, we are in contact with the supplier who, in addition to us, also supplies many other market participants in Germany." Everything is now being done to check the allegations made by the animal welfare organizations - by an external expert, but also through internal processes. "Based on the results of this review, we reserve the right to take further steps."
