Chicken Industry Faces Challenge From Beyond Meat

Not content to rest on his laurels after creating a plant-based faux chicken that many people (including Bill Gates) consider to be almost indistinguishable from the real (cruel) thing, Beyond Meat founder and CEO Ethan Brown is now calling out poultry producers’ lack of ethics. He posted on the Beyond Meat website an open invitation for anyone to tour the facility at any time, and he challenged the CEOs of the nation’s biggest chicken producers to do the exact same thing.

It’s time to make a change. …You have the right to safe and clean protein. I can’t control what animal meat producers do in their facilities, but I can promise you that we’ll always put your health and safety first.

But don’t take my word for it. Please come visit and watch us make your food. … Our doors are open for you.

So now the ball is in your court, Ron Foster (Foster Farms), Donnie Smith (Tyson), Jim Perdue (Perdue), Bill Lovette (Pilgrim’s Pride) and other protein providers. Will you pledge to open your processing facilities to the public?

The chances that any of the poultry pimps will accept Ethan’s challenge are about as slim as the chances that they will serve Beyond Meat at the company holiday party. After all, these are the same people who support ag-gag bills that would make undercover investigations of factory farms illegal, so they’re not exactly known for throwing open the doors and rolling out the welcome mat.

But they know that there are growing numbers of people who support transparency in the food industry and that we are squawking just as loudly as the chickens they sell for profit.

Celebrate “Clucktober” (and another blow to the meat industry) with a coupon for Beyond Meat and a chance to win free Beyond Meat for a year.