Eddie Bauer Bans Angora Wool After PETA Appeal

PETA Investigation Shows Rabbits Screaming as Workers Rip Fur From Their Bodies for Hats and Gloves

For Immediate Release:
January 8, 2014

Contact:
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382

Following an appeal by PETA, Eddie Bauer confirmed that it has pulled from its stock and will no longer order products made with angora wool. The announcement follows the release of video footage—shot by a PETA Asia investigator in China, the source of 90 percent of the world’s angora fur—that shows that workers violently rip the fur from restrained rabbits’ bodies as the animals scream in terror and pain. They are then dumped back into tiny cages and appear to be in shock.

“Shoppers are horrified by cruelty to rabbits on angora farms and relieved when their favorite stores take action and refuse to support such abuse,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA applauds Eddie Bauer for doing the right thing for animals and consumers.”

PETA Asia’s investigator visited angora farms in China, where there are no penalties for animal abuse on rabbit farms and no standards that regulate the treatment of animals. The investigator documented rabbits, who are highly sensitive and social animals, lying in shock and isolation inside tiny, filthy wire-bottomed cages after having their fur ripped out. This process is repeated every three months for two to five years before their throats are slit and they’re replaced with new rabbits, who will endure the same fate.

Eddie Bauer joins a quickly growing list of compassionate companies—including Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Forever 21, ASOS, H&M, Limited Brands, and Marks & Spencer—that have completely banned angora products since PETA’s investigation was released.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.