“Burger King, talking about animal welfare when you pile up your chickens by the thousands is the pompon on the Garonne”. The tone is set. This Saturday, October 16, 2021 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., activists from animal rights association L214 will wave their banners in front of the restaurant of the fast food chain, located at 1 boulevard de Strasbourg in Toulouse. The mobilization is national. Demonstrations are planned in 33 cities in France, including Nice, Montpellier and Toulon.

“We ask Burger King to take action against the worst practices of raising and slaughtering chickens”, indicates Florence Boyer, in charge of the agrifood campaigns of L214, to The Independent Opinion. According to the association, the fast food chain gets its supplies from farms is intensifying. “The chickens do not come out. Their litter is littered with droppings. They are genetically selected to grow too fast. They can no longer stand on their feet. They also have heart problems. It is a lot of suffering for these animals. These breeding conditions are horrible “, emphasizes Florence Boyer.

L214 asks Burger King to respect the European Chicken Commitment

Yet Burger King ensures on his website : “100% of our nuggets are Nature from Breeders in Terre de France: chickens born and raised in France in a process of environmental progress and animal welfare”. For the association, “this information is misleading”. It therefore asks the brand to respect the criteria of the European Chicken Commitment (ECC). “As one of the leaders in fast food, he has this responsibility. But unlike many of the chain’s competitors such as KFC or Subway, Burger King has not made a commitment,” denounces the person in charge of agrifood campaigns.

These criteria have been established by around thirty European associations. Among them: a reduction in the number of animals per square meter, the ban on ultra-fast growing strains of chickens or even access to natural light. “This is the bare minimum. This request is realistic. But Burger King refuses it,” laments Florence Boyer. L214 also recommends access to the outdoors or a winter garden for at least 20% of the catering chain supply..

A campaign launched against the American fast food chain

The association has been seeking Burger King for more than two years. “They never responded to our requests,” says the food campaign manager. As a result, L214 decided to launch a campaign against Burger King. A satirical video has just been broadcast on the Internet. In it, the “King of the Burger” is presented as “the King of Cruelty” to chickens. A petition has also been launched by the association.

“According to a survey, 91% of citizens are against intensive breeding. The brand remains deaf to the expectations of consumers,” said Florence Boyer. For its part, the association does not intend to let go. “We will continue our action until we obtain a public commitment from Burger King”, assures the person in charge of agrifood campaigns. L214 has already secured the commitment of more than 180 companies to give up eggs from caged hens and the “worst” breeding and slaughtering of chickens..