Complaints Filed After Tyson Foods Undercover Investigation

The first complaint was filed with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), concerning Tyson’s inhumane animal handling practices, including allowing hundreds of chickens to suffocate on repeatedly malfunctioning equipment, and food safety violations, including the slaughter of already-dead birds.

The second complaint was filed with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), citing unsafe working conditions for employees, including repetitive motion stress injuries and inadequate protective gear that allowed chicken feces and feathers to get into workers’ eyes and mouths while workers attempted to hang chickens on the slaughter line at breakneck speed.

Our third complaint was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), accusing Tyson Foods of misleading socially-conscious investors about its animal welfare and worker safety practices.

In September 2016 we sent a follow-up request to the SEC, which was routed to the agency’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy for further review.

When the agencies failed to act on our complaints, the Animal Legal Defense Fund called for regulatory reforms to fix the unsafe and inhumane chicken slaughtering model illustrated by Tyson’s slaughterhouse. We will continue to advocate against high-speed slaughter that inflicts suffering on chickens.