Unusual vending machine filled with sixteen real chickens was installed in the city center of Frankfurt, Germany.
People initially thought that they would be able to buy fresh eggs from it – but instead, they were confronted with the message: “68% of all the chickens in the world are treated like egg-laying machines”.
Pedestrians were asked to only buy eggs from ethical egg farming.
After a short demonstration for their right to a fair life, all chickens were safely returned to their organic farm.
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The Unofficial Art Critic
very creative, but probably traumatizing to the chickens
Apr 5th, 2012
ET
oh yeah great, lets be cruel to animals to demonstrate against cruelty to animals… I really don´t like this idea! Even if it was only for a couple of hours.
Apr 6th, 2012
K
OK, agree…and now, what about us? what about doing the same with people…we are also mostly treated (in work) like money-laying machines…
Apr 6th, 2012
RLY
It kinda disproves what they’re trying to prove. They probably had to get ethical approval to display chickens like this. i.e. if whatever organisation they gained approval from thought that caging them such for a couple of hours was okay, than who’s to say that caging them for long periods of time is bad?
Studies have shown no difference in the cortisol(stress hormone) levels in free ranging and caged chickens, yet people are still causing fuss, because the results of these studies aren’t being disseminated well enough.
Apr 6th, 2012
flatsolid
The whole issue about the rights of chickens is pretty much hypocritical. Is it ethical to confine “money-laying working people” (as K has rightly commended) to glass-cladded monstrous buildings? Or to condemn less privileged people to live under inapproriate and squalid conditions for their entire lives?
Sorry to German people too, but as far as I can recall, the German State has a very nasty tradition in confining and suppressive policies.
Apr 6th, 2012
Rob
OK, but chickens are egg laying machines! they are either for eggs or meat! who the eff cares how chickens are treated! they don’t have feelings, they are stupid farm animals that we kill to harvest their meat!
Apr 6th, 2012
Ani
cool idea indeed!
Apr 6th, 2012
Yui
As someone who has raise free-range chickens, I would tell you there are major differences between the chickens and eggs from the fresh/organic farm and the one place on your table from the mega-farms.
The chickens on mega-farm for meat and eggs have been genetically changed. Meat chickens have larger breasts and wider legs (so that when they are transported and kills the legs do not slip through the bar, also larger chicken feet are huge sellers in Asia) and will only survive 6-7 weeks. If they don’t get harvested at that time, they will die.
Mega-farm egg layers might last a year, but will never be eaten. They are enhanced to have wider behinds to pop eggs out easier. They never get to move as they are placed in a holder and food/water is placed in front. Behind is a conveyor that sends the eggs into containers to be shipped.
Conversely, we have raised chickens that have lived as long as 10 years, will raise many flocks of chicks, lay beautiful eggs, get to run around their whole lives, and be free of genetic changes.
Apr 6th, 2012
Unicorn
I lived in Frankfurt, how come I’ve never noticed tht machine :D
Apr 6th, 2012
Spectator
Did they get a written notarized permission for being showed like that on the streets, signed by the chickens? Or they just bluntly violated chikens’ rights?
Apr 6th, 2012
Paul Gideon Dann
Wow, this seemed pretty obvious to me, but most of the other comments seemed to miss this:
Chickens are OK with confined spaces for a short amount of time. These ones clearly had plenty of interesting stuff going on around them to keep them interested, and were about to turn around and generally stretch out a bit. These hens were fine.
On the other hand, battery hens are kept in horrifically cramped positions, unable to move in noisy, smelly, factories with nothing to do but sit there and lay eggs.
This is also nothing like humans in offices. Battery hens don’t get to go home at the end of the day.
Apr 6th, 2012
Pedro Hazza
@Paul Gideon Dann
finally, a person with sense! i applaud your open-minded mind.
Apr 7th, 2012
Alyssa
This is cool, but seems way to inhumane
Apr 8th, 2012
aljoheri
No, it’s bad for checkins ! why we do that ?
Apr 8th, 2012
Haley
Saying this demonstration is similar to the cramped mega-farms it is arguing against, is like comparing me putting my dog in a travel kennel on moving day to him being in a puppy mill his whole life. It’s COMPLETELY different. Even organic chickens sometimes travel in small spaces every now and then, so if they’re doing this for one day to possibly change hundreds of minds and promote funding for organic farms, then I think the people crying “inhumanity” are missing the bigger picture.
Apr 9th, 2012
Gert
I really don’t care how my meat feels about how it was treated before I eat it.
I don’t care if my cow or pig was unhappy with it’s life. If I wasn’t going to eat it eventually, it never would have been alive in the first place.
Now excuse me while I go eat the bacon of a depressed pig. lol.
Apr 9th, 2012
Jason A
This works. Animals are often confined to such spaces during transport. No psychocolical trauma from that (haven’t you guys ever flown coach?). I’m sure the people who saw this display at least considered that their egg sandwich that morning wasn’t worth a chicken living its entire life in misery.
There’s currently a batch of legislation going around in different states requiring that each have enough room to spread their wings within their cage. Consider looking into your state’s rules – and if inadequate – pay attention to where your eggs come from!
Apr 13th, 2012
Ru
People who say they don’t care about free range eggs have obviously never done a taste test or side by side comparison. In my opinion, having eaten both caged eggs and free range ones, the free range ones have larger, more golden yolks and are much tastier.
Apr 23rd, 2012