Aldi wants to abolish chick killing - foodwatch sues against "brazen lie"

Created: 2022-02-04 21:33

By: Daniel Hagen

Aldi has been advertising for months that they are the first grocer to want to abolish the killing of chicks.

But because that's not true, foodwatch has filed a lawsuit.

"Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd have set themselves the goal of converting the entire chicken egg range by 2022 at the latest.

Male chicks will no longer have to die for our soil and organic eggs.

This makes us the first grocers in Germany to only offer eggs without killing chicks," the company writes on its website.

The big headline reads “We will abolish the killing of chicks”.

Appropriately, there has been a new law since January 1, 2022 that prohibits this controversial practice. * But is everything at Aldi really as promised?

that reveals HEIDELBERG24*.

According to the foodwatch association, which deals with consumer rights and the quality of food, Aldi's promise is just "animal welfare fraud" and a "macabre marketing gimmick".

For this reason, the Berlin-based association filed a lawsuit with the Chamber for Commercial Matters at the Essen District Court in October 2020.

That is where Aldi's headquarters are located.

Aldi: lawsuit from foodwatch because of false promises

The lawsuit is about the discounter advertising with statements like "we're getting rid of killing chicks", "without killing chicks at Aldi Nord" or "the Aldi initiative - without killing chicks", although that is not 100 percent true.

"For us at foodwatch it was clear: Aldi must not go after customers with such a brazen lie," says the association's website.

But what exactly is wrong with the big promise?

foodwatch is suing Aldi.

(Photomontage) © Marcel Kusch/dpa/foodwatch

It's about continuing to offer food that has been processed with shredded male chicks.

Because the sales ban only applies to fresh eggs, but not to products that contain eggs.

However, the discounter does not communicate this to customers, which is why foodwatch accuses Aldi of “misleading deception of the consumer”.

After all, Aldi intends to do more to combat animal suffering by 2030 with its “5D regulation” and its milk reform.

Aldi: foodwatch criticizes alternative methods

“The cruelty to animals of high-performance breeding must come to an end.

That's why we are not satisfied with Aldi's admission.

We continue to fight resolutely for the switch to these "second-use chickens", i.e. to completely "normal" chickens that both lay eggs and prepare meat," writes foodwatch and criticizes the current processes in the agricultural industry.

In these, male chicks are not even hatched in the egg, but are used directly as "feed".

Alternatively, there is also the so-called "brother rooster breeding", in which the brothers of the laying hens are not killed, but raised for meat production.

According to foodwatch, in mid-January - and thus shortly before the start of the court hearing - Aldi undertook to no longer use the advertising concerned.

“Anyone who only pretends to be animal welfare must fear an embarrassing court case,” warns the association, which is demanding a fine of up to 250,000 euros for Aldi.

But there is also a risk of trouble for the discounter elsewhere.

As Ruhr24 reports, the district court in Duisburg is examining whether Aldi can call itself a “climate-neutral food retailer”.

(ie) HEIDELBERG24 and Ruhr24 are offers from IPPEN.MEDIA.