The ‘Lidl Shop of Horrors’ was once again targeted by animal protection group The Humane League UK this week, as it projected images of ‘Frankenchickens’ onto three Lidl stores in southwest London, to draw attention to the supermarkets’ cruelty to chickens.
The projections, on Lidl stores in Wandsworth, Colliers Wood, and Merton, depicted a chick growing into a Frankenchicken, as Lidl uses unnaturally fast-growing and large chickens, who endure terrible physical suffering as a result.
This action follows a protest by The Humane League last week outside Lidl’s Bristol store, in which they paraded a giant Frankenchicken – activity which trended on X (formerly Twitter) on the same day.
So-called Frankenchickens make up around 90% of the more than one billion chickens reared and killed for meat in the UK each year. As a result of their rapid growth, these chickens can suffer heart attacks, organ failure, lameness, bone deformities, muscle diseases and burns. They also require between six and nine times more antibiotics than slower-growing breeds – potentially contributing to dangerous diseases that also put people at risk.
Talking about the projections in London today, Jodi Darwood, Campaigns Coordinator for The Humane League UK, said: “Traditionally October is a time for scares, but the really terrifying thing is that chickens are suffering all year round at Lidl. The supermarket group perpetuates a cycle of suffering by allowing fast-growing chicken breeds in their supply chain – dubbed Frankenchickens due to their monstrous growth rate. Multiple investigations have uncovered a shocking pattern of abuse, pointing to widespread mistreatment of animals on farms associated with Lidl. Lidl’s refusal to move away from these cruel practices is disturbing and horrific.”
The charity also says that around one in 20 of these fast-growing chickens, who live in cramped barns, are culled or die of illness on farms, whereas slower-growing breeds experience around half the rate of mortality – making this a hugely unsustainable way to produce food, in addition to the animal cruelty.
The Humane League UK is calling for Lidl to ‘end the nightmare’ and to sign up to the ‘Better Chicken Commitment’. KFC, Nando’s, Greggs, and Lidl France are among the 330+ companies in the UK and the EU to have committed to the BCC, but the rest of Lidl has so far refused.
“It’s clear switching to slower-growing breeds is better for chickens, humans, and the planet. That’s why we’re calling on Lidl to urgently change its supply chain.” says Darwood.