Holly Spindler
In a win for animals, Lidl GB has announced it will give chickens more space.
Today, Lidl announced that it will be increasing the space that each of the chickens has on its suppliers’ farms. The supermarket follows in the footsteps of Morrisons, Co-op, and Sainsbury’s, which are also giving chickens more space.
The Humane League UK have been campaigning against Lidl since October 2022. With our supporters and the might of the Open Wing Alliance beside us, the campaign has seen the release of over half a dozen undercover investigations, more than 80 protests, and 656 media stories, all exposing the truth behind Lidl's animal welfare scandal to millions of people across Europe.
This commitment by Lidl shows the pressure is working. And as a result, millions of chickens will experience meaningful change.
It’s a good step forward for animal welfare. Stocking density - the industry term for the amount of animals in a set area - has an impact on the lives of those confined to factory farms.
The current industry standard means that each chicken only gets the space of around an A4 piece of paper - not much when you consider the size these birds grow to. Lidl plans to increase this by 20%, meeting the criteria of the Better Chicken Commitment (BCC).
This could mean that the birds are healthier, with stronger legs and fewer painful skin conditions caused by contact with their own waste on the factory farm floor.
But it’s not the end of the story, and it’s not enough on its own.
Lidl is still refusing to commit to the full BCC, meaning that it will continue to sell Frankenchickens in its shops.
The breeds of chickens used by Lidl are bred to suffer. Genetically selected to grow too big, too fast, these birds often endure lameness, deformities, and early deaths. They live a short life filled with suffering.
Changing the breed is fundamental to reforming the cruelty of factory farming.
In addition, Lidl has only committed to improving space for the chickens reared for its 'fresh' range, and not chickens used for frozen food or as ingredients. This move is also only being made by Lidl GB, meaning that its sites across Europe will not be taking even this basic step towards doing better for chickens.
While we celebrate this concrete, incremental step towards a better future for animals raised for food, we know Lidl has not gone far enough. We know that people want chickens to have good lives. In fact, nearly 600,000 people across Europe have signed petitions asking Lidl to sign the full BCC.
So we’ll continue to fight for chickens on factory farms and bring an end to these fast-growing breeds.
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