Attention, Walmart Shoppers: ‘Great Value’ Eggs Are Obtained in a Grossly Violent Way

Posted by Bridget on August 23, 2024

A PETA undercover investigator visited an egg farm in Ohio that supplies Walmart (which sells its eggs under its Great Value brand). This farm keeps up to 2.4 million hens in 16 massive sheds.

What PETA found inside the sheds will show you how dark a “sunny-side up” breakfast really is.

Live Hens Caged With Decomposing Corpses

PETA’s visit to the farm—which is operated by Trillium Farm Holdings, LLC—followed the tips of two whistleblowers, including one who stated that dead hens were left to decompose among live ones in severely crowded cages.

Hens Killed, Including by Being Slowly Decapitated

When a hen was severely injured but still alive in a trash bin after a farm supervisor tried to kill her, PETA’s investigator immediately alerted the supervisor—but found the hen still languishing in pain two days later. A worker tried to finish her off by breaking her neck.

Workers also attempted to kill hens by twisting and pulling off their heads. In one case, after tugging on a hen’s head over and over again, a worker dropped her on the floor while she was still alive and left her there to die slowly. This is horrifying, inexcusable, and heartless.

A worker tore this hen’s head off and dropped her on the floor while she was still flapping her wings.

Trapped and Stressed in Crowded Cages and Killed in Violent Ways

Happy hens (ones who aren’t used by humans for any reason) can live for five to 10 years, but most of those used for eggs are kept for up to two years in dark sheds, crammed into row after row of wire-floored cages, barely able to move. Each one has less living space than a sheet of paper.

fter two years, the hens are “spent” and their egg production declines. Chickens are gentle, intelligent animals who enjoy basking in the sun, being with family, and living freely—but on egg farms, they’re treated as nothing more than factory equipment to be used and then thrown away. Birds at this farm were yanked out of cages, slammed against metal boxes, and then stuffed inside the boxes, piled one on top of another. If they didn’t suffocate, they were gassed with carbon dioxide, which can cause extreme pain. Chickens could be heard crying out from inside the metal boxes and banging against the walls.

Tell Walmart Shoppers: The Egg Industry Is Violent and Deadly

While you’re out shopping, go to the egg aisle at Walmart. When you see customers reaching for a carton, talk to them about PETA’s investigation. The goal is to get them to put down the eggs and choose a vegan egg replacer instead.

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The abuse uncovered at Walmart’s egg supplier is shocking but not surprising. Sadly, it’s typical, so the least we can do is speak up for chickens. Many people who eat eggs would stop if they knew how bad conditions are on farms—but they probably have no idea. Being confronted with the cruelty of egg production as they’re putting a carton into their basket will likely lead them to change their habits—and you’ll be able to see the impact of your advocacy in real time.