Hello everyone, This week, Mercy For Animals released White Striping at Whole Foods, a shopper-led investigative report exposing the company's continued reliance on birds bred for extreme and unnaturally fast growth. The exposé, featured on WholeFoodsChicken.com, addresses the disturbing truth behind white striping and the prevalence of signs of muscle abnormality in Whole Foods' chicken supply.  The Investigation: In February 2025, Mercy For Animals called on people living near Whole Foods locations to survey chicken meat at their local stores for evidence of white striping disease. This disease is visible as white lines of fat across chicken meat that have replaced oxygen-deprived muscle tissue, commonly due to rapid growth. Meat products from ultrafast-growing birds often bear these scars. While not harmful to consumers, they are visible proof of the appalling cruelty the animals endure. The Results: Participants investigated chicken meat at 88 Whole Foods locations in North America. The stores surveyed span 52 cities across 18 U.S. states and six cities in one Canadian province. Meat with clear signs of white striping was found at every location visited, a strong indication that Whole Foods continues to source Frankenchickens. Next Steps: The findings are alarming and highlight the urgent need for Whole Foods to fulfill their promise to stop sourcing ultrafast-growing birds. With the report's release, we are escalating our public efforts to urge Whole Foods to publish a clear, incremental roadmap toward fulfilling their commitment to banning Frankenchickens and improving chicken welfare in their supply chain. One such effort is an open letter signed by 14 doctors and public health experts imploring Whole Foods to follow through on their pledge, pointing out the risks posed by failing to do so. The letter cites the results of this report. We hope this report is beneficial to your organization. Feel free to reach out directly to me with any questions at natal

Hi FAST!  The fight against fur farming in Sweden has taken yet another step forward.  This past week, the Swedish government has officially launched an inquiry into how a fur farming ban can be implemented. This follows a commitment made in 2023 and is the result of over 50 years of advocacy by Project 1882.  Last year, the government pledged to phase out mink farms and explore a full ban on fur farming. To support this transition, financial aid was introduced earlier this year to help farmers shut down their operations. Now, with this inquiry in motion, Sweden is closer than ever to ending fur farming for good. A legal ban is essential to ensure fur farming never returns.  The inquiry will outline how the ban will be enforced, with “animal ethics discussions” cited as a reason for moving forward. With the last mink farms expected to close to qualify for the government’s decommissioning support of 180 million SEK, industry resistance is fading, making a ban easier to implement.  Now, Project 1882 is urging the Swedish government to move forward with the inquiry without delay and to push for an EU-wide ban in line with the Fur Free Europe citizens’ initiative.  Read more here: https://www.project1882.org/news/major-victory-sweden-moves-closer-ban-fur-farming  

Shy 38 Inc. Kansas Farm Sanctuary along with AnimaLearn and United Poultry Concerns are launching the sanctuary's new humane alternative to classroom chick hatching: The Hatching Kindness Project! The program is free for educators and is meant to replace live chick hatching in elementary schools. It includes a complete curriculum, chicken and egg models, books, an app and access to our Chicken TV Livestream where students can at any time peek in to view their "adopted flock" and observe natural chicken behavior. For more info, (and to request the program) visit our website: https://www.shy38.org/hatching-kindness We will be presenting The Hatching Kindness Project at the APHE National Humane Education Conference in Kansas City in April.

Hello everyone! We are pleased to announce our first commitment from a manufacturing company. Breza, a manufacturer of cookies and panettones, has committed to transitioning to 100% cage-free eggs by the end of 2025. Commitment link: You can see the publication of the commitment in this LINK. Scale: National (Perú) Timeline: First contact in February, continuous follow-up until achieving the commitment. Who: Compromiso Verde Unsuccessful Tactics: None. Successful Tactics: Present the proposal as a sustainability policy and send them text suggestions for the announcement. Scalability: This commitment is important because it sets an example for larger manufacturers to make a cage-free egg commitment. Follow Up: We will stay in touch to request reports and validate compliance with the commitment.  Thank you!

Animal Outlook has launched its first Behavior Change and Volunteer Impact report, showing the results of programs that aim to influence lasting behavior change. Produced in collaboration with User-Friendly, the report documents some of the ways we can create measurable progress in shifting public attitudes and behaviors towards vegan eating. The report also shows the impact of volunteers in helping to maximize efforts in the animal protection movement. Last year, Animal Outlook volunteers completed almost 6,000 hours of work for animals. Read the full report here: https://animaloutlook.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Final-Behavior-Change-and-Volunteer-Impact-Report-2024.pdf  Coverage in Vegconomist: https://vegconomist.com/market-and-trends/animal-outlook-finds-behavior-change-strategies-volunteer-efforts-fuel-growth-vegan-diets/