RSPCA: Hugh and Jamie are chicken champions

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Thursday, 26, Jun 2008 12:00

As Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall takes Tesco to task about chickens at the company's AGM, the RSPCA is presenting him with an award for his efforts to improve chicken welfare across the UK.

Fellow celebrity chef and campaigner Jamie Oliver will also receive an award for his influential chicken welfare campaigning at the RSPCA's annual general meeting on Saturday (28 June).

Mr. Fearnley-Whittingstall has thanked the RSPCA for the award, but insisted that the campaign must continue.

At the beginning of the year, Oliver and Fearnley-Whittingstall launched campaigns to highlight the welfare problems associated with the standard production of about 855 million meat chickens reared in the UK each year.

The chefs' TV programmes Jamie's Fowl Dinner's and Hugh's Chicken Run revealed the shocking conditions in which many 'standard' chickens are reared.

Since launching these campaigns the chefs have worked tirelessly to urge consumers, producers and retailers to invest in birds that are raised to a higher welfare standard such as the RSPCA-monitored Freedom Foods scheme*, free range or organic.

"We are delighted to present both Hugh and Jamie with these awards in recognition of their valuable ongoing work in this area," said Dr Marc Cooper, RSPCA senior farm animal scientist.

"We look forward to carrying on our partnership with the chefs and hope that with their support, the revolution in raising chicken welfare standards throughout the UK will continue."

Other award winners at the RSPCA's AGM include Dr Arthur Lindley, the charity's former director of science and Prof. John Webster - a founding member of the Farm Animal Welfare Council and the first advocate of the 'Five Freedoms,' which underpin the ethos of Freedom Food standards.

Awards will also be presented to campaigner Gem De Silva from British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection (BUAV), Sonja van Tichelen from Eurogroup for Animals, and the charity Horseworld.

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For images or further information about the awards, please contact Calie Woozley at the RSPCA press office on 0300 123 0490.

RSPCA, Wilberforce Way, Southwater, Horsham, West Sussex RH13 9RS

Press office direct lines: 0300 123 0244/0288 Fax: 0303 123 0099

Duty press officer (evenings and weekends) Tel 0870 0555500 and ask for pager number 828825

Email: press@rspca.org.uk Website: www.rspca.org.uk