Action Alert: Help stop the egg industry’s deceptive “Animal Care Certified” logo
 Background:
The United Egg Producers (UEP) continues to stamp its deceptive "Animal
Care Certified" (ACC) logo on egg cartons across the country despite two
separate rulings from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) deeming the seal misleading.
According to the BBB's National Advertising Review Board, the "Animal Care
Certified" seal conveys a message to consumers that egg-laying hens are
afforded "a more humane level of care than is actually the case."
The UEP has yet to comply with the BBB's recommendations to significantly alter
the logo. As a result, the BBB recently referred the case to the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) for potential legal action against the UEP.
Visit EggScam.com to:
- Read about the cruelties permitted under the UEP's so-called "Animal
Care Certified" program
- Learn about COK's petition to prohibit the UEP from using its misleading
ACC logo
- See COK's photo and video galleries documenting the miserable conditions
for hens living on ACC farms.
How You Can Help: The Federal Trade Commission accepts letters from
individuals who support a filed petition, and the more supportive letters they
receive, the better.
Please write a short letter to the FTC in support of COK's petition to prohibit
egg producers from using the "Animal Care Certified" logo on their
cartons.
Below is a sample letter. Please feel free to edit as you see fit, but be sure
to mention that the Better Business Bureau has now referred its finding that
the "Animal Care Certified" logos are misleading to the FTC for possible
law enforcement action.
Draft Letter:
[Date]
Deborah Platt Majoras, Chairperson
Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
Washington, DC 20580
Dear Ms. Majoras:
I am writing in support of Compassion Over Killing's petition regarding false
and misleading advertising on egg cartons. The petition was filed on June 11,
2003.
Egg producers across the country are labeling their cartons with an "Animal
Care Certified" logo, causing many consumers to mistakenly believe the
hens laying "Animal Care Certified" eggs are treated humanely. In
fact, these hens are confined in wire cages so small they cannot even flap their
wings. They never see sunlight, let alone go outdoors; never touch earth; and
are prevented from engaging in all types of natural behaviors, such as nesting,
dust-bathing, foraging, and roosting.
Additionally, these birds may have parts of their beaks seared off with a hot
blade—without any painkiller—in order to reduce the impact of the
stress-induced aggression that occurs when birds are intensively confined. As
well, they may have food withheld from them up to the point where they have
lost 30 percent of their weight in order to jolt their bodies into a new laying
cycle.
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) has determined that this advertising, controlled
by the United Egg Producers, Inc. ("UEP"), is misleading to consumers.
Further, the BBB has referred its case against the UEP to the Federal Trade
Commission for enforcement.
I strongly urge the FTC to follow the Better Business Bureau's recommendation,
enjoin further distribution of the advertising, and require corrective advertising.
As a concerned consumer, I respectfully urge the FTC to take action against
the UEP and prohibit its members from using the "Animal Care Certified"
logo on their egg cartons.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Address]
[Phone Number]
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