Intensive Meat Production Is to Blame for Salmonella Outbreak That Has So Far Sickened at Least 10 Michigan Residents, Says Group
For Immediate Release:
August 5, 2011
Contact:
Kristin Richards 202-483-7382
Lansing, Mich. — In response to meat giant Cargill's recent recall of 36 million pounds of turkey flesh—which was pinpointed as the source of a salmonella outbreak that has killed one person and sickened dozens more, including 10 in Michigan—PETA is planning to run its "Turkey Terrorism" TV spot on local Lansing stations.
In the ad, a shaky voice takes over a grocery-store intercom, saying, "Do exactly as I say and nobody gets hurt! Resist, and innocent creatures will be beaten … while countless people will be poisoned at random by food laced with deadly bacteria." The scene ends when the voice is revealed to belong to a "turkey," who says, "It's your choice, but if you know what's good for you, you'll meet my one, simple demand: Go vegetarian!"
"From salmonella to E. coli to campylobacter, filthy factory farms and slaughterhouses are responsible for an enormous amount of disease and infection," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "PETA wants people to know that the single best way to avoid exposure to harmful bacteria is to switch to a delicious, healthy, and humane vegan diet."
News of the recall—which the Agriculture Department has described as one of the largest in history—comes after the Centers for Disease Control released its findings in 2010 that poultry is the number one cause of food poisoning outbreaks. Disease runs rampant on crowded factory farms, and E. coli, salmonella, campylobacter, and listeria all originate in animals.
A PETA undercover investigation of turkey factory farms documented that workers punched, threw, and kicked live birds; bludgeoned birds with pipes, pieces of wood, and tools; deliberately broke turkeys' necks and other bones; stomped on birds' heads; forcefully shoved feces into birds' mouths; held birds' heads under water; and urinated in a turkey pen.
For more information, please visit PETA.org.