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02/27/2019 ANONYMOUS DONOR GIVES ANIMAL-RIGHTS GROUP $10K TO END THE SLAUGHTER OF CHICKENS

An anonymous donor made a $10,000 donation last week to animal-rights group Mercy For Animals (MFA) with a mandate to use it toward the fight to eliminate forms of factory farming involving chickens. Through its corporate engagement program, MFA will work to persuade the largest food companies and new restaurants to adopt meaningful animal-welfare standards for chickens. The donation was made in honor of Dr. Elliot Katz, veterinarian and founder of animal-rights organization In Defense of Animals, who has worked to protect animals, people, and the environment for more than 30 years. According to MFA, chickens make up 98 percent of the animals raised and killed for food in the United States, and, due to genetic manipulation and drugs, are bred to grow so large so fast that they suffer heart attacks, organ failure, and become immobilized under their own weight. (vegnews.com)

02/25/2019 TRUMP ELIMINATES ANIMAL-WELFARE REGULATIONS

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) overturned the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices (OLPP), a rule that regulates welfare standards for farmed animals whose meat can be sold as "organic." The Obama-era rule was created in 2016 after lengthy lobbying from a number of groups, including animal-rights organizations, to implement better standards for farmed animals, which included the freedom for chickens to spread their wings and for other farmed animals to have access to the outdoors. The USDA delayed voting on the implementation of OLPP three times and ultimately overturned it despite nearly 47,000 consumer comments in support of expanding protections for farmed animals."This is a case of the fox guarding the henhouse," Lindsay Wolf, Vice President of Investigations for animal-rights group Mercy For Animals, told VegNews. "The government officials responsible for regulating the agricultural industry are bending over backwards to protect corporate agribusiness profits at the expense of animals, food safety, and workers' rights. As a result, millions of farmed animals are being deprived of the benefit of modest laws and regulations designed to protect their welfare and promote the public interest." (vegnews.com)

02/22/2019 2019 OSCARS AFTER-PARTY MENU IS VEGAN PARADISE

Hollywood celebrities will have more vegan options than ever at this year's Oscars Governors Ball, the official after-party of the 91st annual Academy Awards. On February 24, a team of 200 culinarians will serve 70 dishes created by chef Wolfgang Puck for the event, many of which will be vegan. The "amuse-bouche" course features vegan avocado tostadas topped with crunchy cabbage and drizzled in a chipotle glaze, while vegan hors d'Oeuvres passed on trays include wild mushroom potstickers with black truffle ponzu dipping sauce; mini taro root tacos with miso glazed eggplant and smoked soy mushrooms; apple-wrapped summer rolls; and "tartare" made with heirloom carrots, pickled mustard seed, horseradish, and sunchoke bark. The event will feature a 2,000-pound hand-carved ice bar where vegan guests can opt for vegetable rolls. A variety of hot and cold small plates will be passed around the party with several vegan options. The Oscar menu also features several specialty cocktails and a variety of vegan dessert options. Similarly, the menu at this year's Grammy Awards was the most vegan-friendly in its 61-year history thanks to a partnership with PETA, which ensured that every food station offered a substantial vegan option. (vegnews.com)

02/20/2019 TEEN LAUNCHES ON-DEMAND VEGAN "MILKMAN" SERVICE

Nineteen-year-old Steven Macedo recently launched Leche, a monthly plant-based milk subscription service in Los Angeles. The service allows customers to sign up for doorstep delivery of fresh, made-to-order vegan milk or pick up at designated LA locations. A $40 subscription price amounts to five quarts of dairy-free milk each month. The milk is made using organic, non-GMO nuts, seeds, and fruit such as oats, pecans, Brazil nuts, sesame seeds, cashews, bananas, and sunflower seeds, with the option to add additional flavors such as cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, cacao, or guava. "Dairy is terrible for the environment and so I set out to create a sustainable, delicious alternative while challenging the stereotypes of what Latinx flavors are," Macedo told VegNews. "I wanted to show the wide variety of flavors and ingredients in our culture—I was raised on oat, rice, and pumpkin-seed milks." Leche also strives to be 100-percent sustainable by reusing all of the waste from milk production to create bath bombs, lip balms, body and face scrubs, and body butters. (vegnews.com)

02/18/2019 AUSTRALIA OFFICIALLY ENDS COSMETIC ANIMAL TESTING

Last week, Australia's Senate passed the Industrial Chemicals Bill 2017, effectively banning cosmetic animal testing nationwide. The bill was first introduced by the House of Representatives in June 2017 and supported by animal-rights group Humane Society International (HSI). Hannah Stuart, HSI campaign manager for #BeCrueltyFree Australia, said: "This week's commitments by the government to further restrict the use of new animal test data for cosmetic uses, and to reduce reliance on animal testing more broadly as well, come as a product of nearly three years of intensive negotiations with Humane Society International." HSI worked with the Australian government to ensure that 11 reinforcement measures are put in place to assure that every ingredient is covered under the animal-testing ban. Moving forward, Australia's government will no longer accept animal testing as proof of safety or efficiency of cosmetic ingredients or products. Instead, HSI will work with the government to develop non-animal based testing methods. Worldwide, recent legislation has made it more difficult for companies that continue to test on animals to sell their products, including in California where the Cruelty-Free Cosmetics Act will prohibit the sale of products tested on animals after January 1, 2020. (vegnews.com)

02/15/2019 VICTORIA BECKHAM DITCHES EXOTIC ANIMAL SKINS

Former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham has become the latest fashion designer to pledge to stop using exotic animal skins in her designs. Beckham's line has never used animal fur, but her latest pledge means clothing and accessories made from alligator, crocodile, ostrich, and snake skins will be discontinued as of the Fall 2019 collection. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) prompted the pledge after it conducted several exposés into the exotic-skins industry. "Behind every crocodile, alligator, snake, or lizard handbag or pair of shoes is a violent death," PETA UK Director Elisa Allen said. "Victoria Beckham's decision to ban exotic skins will spare countless remarkable animals immense suffering, and PETA UK calls on other luxury brands to follow her kind example." Beckham joins a growing list of fashion labels that have banned the use of exotic skins or other animal materials in recent years, including Chanel, Gucci, and Michael Kors. (vegnews.com)

02/13/2019 STARTUP DISCOVERS GROUNDBREAKING VEGAN PROTEIN INSIDE YELLOWSTONE HOT SPRINGS

New startup Sustainable Bioproducts announced that it raised $33 million in funding to aid in its mission of creating plant-based and lab-grown foods using a microorganism sourced from a volcanic hot spring in Yellowstone National Park. "These extremophiles learned to be extremely efficient in using their resources," Sustainable Bioproducts CEO Thomas Jonas said about the microorganisms, which contain all nine of the essential amino acids. "They are very relevant at a point in time when humanity already uses tremendous amounts of resources to support the highly inefficient animal-protein model." The company isolates the microorganisms, feeds them glycerin and starches, and ferments them in a laboratory setting to create a base that can be used for various applications. Sustainable Bioproducts recently raised its Series A funding from a number of investment firms, including those led by business magnates Richard Branson, Bill Gates, and Jeff Bezos, yogurt brand Danone, and agricultural giant Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. The company plans to use its funding to create prototypes that could include vegan dairy and meat products, and protein-rich additives to foods such as yogurt. "What we have here is a super protein," Jonas said. "And it comes from one of the most pristine wild places on the planet." (vegnews.com)

02/11/2019 VEGAN-LED CHILDREN'S PROTEST DEMANDS ADULTS TAKE CLIMATE ACTION

The School Strike for Climate Change is scheduled to take place for the first time in the United States in New York City on March 15. Originally started by vegan teen activist Greta Thunberg, the campaign urges students to walk out of classes to encourage world leaders to make meaningful commitments to fight climate change. The US-based arm of the protest is the work of 13-year-old student activist Alexandria Villasenor, who has personally protested climate-change inaction in front of the UN office every Friday. Villasenor decided to take action after witnessing climate-related events such as the California wildfires. Politicians have criticized young climate activists for skipping classes in favor of protesting for climate action, to which Villasenor responded, "If we're not going to have a future, then school won't matter anymore." Villasenor partnered with climate-advocacy group This is Zero Hour to organize the event—which is expected to have support from other groups, including 365, Extinction Rebellion, and The Sunrise Movement. Villasenor's protest has already garnered interest from student groups in Australia and Europe, with students expected to participate in Thailand and Uganda, as well. (vegnews.com)

02/08/2019 12-YEAR-OLD ACTIVIST CHALLENGES POPE FRANCIS TO GO VEGAN FOR $1 MILLION

Genesis Butler—a 12-year-old vegan activist—presented Pope Francis with a tempting offer, asking him to go vegan for Lent in exchange for a $1 million charity donation of his choosing. Butler is leading the Million Dollar Vegan (MDV) global campaign to urge the Pope to "help fight climate change with diet change," and is supported by animal advocates Sir Paul McCartney, actress Mena Suvari, musician Moby, and more. MDV asks the Pope—a vocal supporter of climate-change action—to set an example for his followers during Lent, a holiday that promotes discipline and the avoidance of "sinful" foods such as meat. "We're launching this bold campaign to jolt our world leaders from complacency. For too long they've failed to act on evidence of the damage caused by animal agriculture; many have subsidized that very industry, but we cannot afford for them to remain silent," MDV CEO Matthew Glover said. "We're thankful Pope Francis has spoken on these issues, which is why we're asking him to try vegan for Lent, and set an example of how we can align our principles of compassion with our actions." Last year, Butler—who went vegan at age six—launched nonprofit organization Genesis for Animals, an organization that raises funding to benefit the work of farmed animal sanctuaries. (vegnews.com)

02/07/2019 BRITISH VEGAN POPULATION TO SKYROCKET BY 327 PERCENT IN 2019 ALONE

The vegan population in the United Kingdom will increase by 327 percent in 2019, according to data collected by personal finance website finder.com. The report is based on a survey of 2,000 UK residents that represent the average population in terms of age, gender, and region. The survey found that 2.2 million Brits plan to follow a plant-based diet in 2019, the most popular of the three diet trends (vegan, vegetarian, and pescatarian) that pathfinder.com observed. While the poll found that a plant-based diet is more expensive than the others, the difference amounted to only an extra £2 ($2.62) per week. The new predictions build on an already booming vegan population in the UK. In 2016, The Vegan Society found that only one percent of Brits (542,000) identified as vegan—a number that then represented a 360-percent increase since 2006. Last year, consumer research company Compare the Market Ltd. found that the UK vegan population had grown by 600 percent to represent seven percent of the country's total population. (vegnews.com)

02/05/2019 ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS CALL FOR STRICTER LAWS AGAINST ANIMAL ABUSE

Croatian animal rights activists released on Monday a list of 45 high-profile cases of animal torture and killings in 2018, calling for the government to form an animal protection inspectorate and adopt a comprehensive animal protection law. The non-governmental organisation Animal Friends Croatia said that although misdemeanour and criminal offences reported against animals in 2018 had not increased in frequency compared to previous years, such cases were more publicised, leading to more awareness in the general public of the need to prevent and punish such acts of cruelty. "In addition to cases of sadistic abuse, animals often suffer or die due to irresponsible treatment, and many are killed in attempts to get rid of unwanted newborns, by drowning, suffocating, burying them alive, and other brutal methods," said Ivana Lunka of Animal Friends Croatia. She added that the only way to reduce the frequency of animal abuse would be an animal protection law. "Even though the proscribed fines for animal abuse are up to 80,000 kuna (€10,800), fines actually dished out to animal abusers are still low. Although the criminal code sets jail terms of up to one year for abusers of animals, most cases end with only conditional sentences for perpetrators," the group said. (hr.n1info.com)

02/04/2019 TESCO TO CLOSE ITS MEAT, DELI, AND FISH COUNTERS

Tesco, the United Kingdom's largest supermarket chain, is expected to close its meat, fish, and deli counters as part of its plan to create a more efficient business operation. The supermarket is also reportedly reducing its staff by 15,000 and replacing staffed canteens with vending machines. Despite cuts, the chain more than doubled its Wicked Kitchen vegan prepared food line last fall to meet the growing demand for plant-based food after sales increased by more than 25 percent last year. The line, which was created by Tesco executive chef and Director of Plant-Based Innovation Derek Sarno and his brother Chad Sarno includes items such as Spicy Veg and Mushroom Sourdough Pizza, Pesto Lasagna, and Charred Pineapple Dream Cake. In addition to the Wicked Healthy line, Tesco recently added vegan steak Vivera and vegan pizzas made by European brand Oumph! to its shelves. (vegnews.com)

02/01/2019 DOCTORS FIGHT MCDONALD'S "BACON HOUR" WITH SCIENCE

McDonald's recently launched a "Bacon Hour" promotion where customers can receive a side of bacon with any purchase, and doctors from medical group Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) aren't "lovin' it." On Tuesday, members of PCRM protested outside of a Washington D.C. McDonald's, highlighting the devastating medical effects of consuming processed meat such as bacon. The World Health Organization classified processed meat as a Group 1 carcinogen in 2015 after comprehensive scientific studies proved that consuming just one 50-gram portion of the animal product increases colorectal cancer risk by 18 percent. Doctors held signs that read "Colorectal Cancer: I'm Riskin' It," "#BreakUpWithBacon," and "Bacon Causes Butt Cancer," while handing out cancer screening kits to McDonald's customers. (vegnews.com)

The number of news found: 13.

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