Today, word comes from the D.C. based Compassion Over Killing that the Federal Trade Commission has announced an end to the misleading logo. Over 80% of egg cartons in America carry the Animal Care Certified logo, but soon caged egg producers like Wegmans will no longer be able to use the words "animal care."

It's probably unusual for a company like Wegmans to see Federal Trade Commission intervention. In many ways, Wegmans sets the bar as a model company and member of the community. But their egg farm and the way they market it is out of step with the usually high level of respect they have for their customers.

We'd love to see Wegmans adopt truly independent animal care standards like Certified Humane, or at least bring their farm up to the standards that other grocery chains are meeting by stopping their use of battery cages.

With the Animal Care Certified logo off all their cartons by the middle of next year, we're one step closer to our goal of seeing Wegmans be the honest and animal-friendly company we know they can be. It's a shame that this particular change had to be forced by the FTC, and wasn't a voluntary positive step by Wegmans.

We were there until almost midnight outside the theater an in the parking lot, talking to people who enjoyed the film but were shocked at what they saw. Some people were moved to volunteer with us. People coming out of the theater agreed to contact Wegmans and ask them to do their best for the chickens at Wegmans Egg Farm. Many people said that from now on, they would buy cage-free eggs from farmers they could trust.

Please contact The Little and thank them for showing this film. You can send them a message at: http://www.little-theatre.com/contact.php. Thank you to everyone who came and everyone who helped promote the film showing.

Food You Feel Good About?

Also of note, B.A.R.C., a group out of Baltimore, will be out in front of Wegmans's Hunt Valley store the day it opens, October 2nd.

Wegmans is "proud of our egg farm," [Jeanne] Colleluori said. Asked about the treatment of the chickens, [Jo] Natale pointed to the fact that Wegmans' eggs are Animal Care Certified, a self-monitoring program administered by United Egg Producers, an egg industry trade association. She also suggested that the activists' ultimate goal is to discredit the ACC label, a suggestion that may not be far from the truth since Compassionate Consumers and other animal advocacy groups say the label isn't substantive. The Better Business Bureau has twice ruled that egg producers should stop using the ACC labels because they are misleading, but Wegmans' egg cartons still display the logo.

Colleluori conceded that Wegmans eggs are not the most humanely produced variety available.

The article gets our point across. The practices Wegmans condones at their egg farm, and the way they advertise it to their customers, simply don't meet the standards we've come to expect from such a great company.

This will be our first showing in a movie theater, and we're looking forward to it. We'll promote it by distributing movie flyers (PDF) in public venues. Please help us by handing out some flyers at your workplace, school, or around town.

Other large national grocery chains have already stopped selling eggs from caged hens. Wegmans, however, is attacking anyone who questions their claim to be an "industry leader in animal welfare."

We think Wegmans is a great company that can -- and should -- live up to their professed committment to humane farming practices. So we're launching a "Wegmans Egg Farm" campaign . . .

Along with some great information and visuals, they've posted a petition you can sign online which they'll try to hand deliver to Danny Wegman, and a great point-by-point response to Wegmans' claims about Wegmans Egg Farm.

We should note that the Wegmans location in their area hasn't even opened yet! B.A.R.C. is getting a great head start on the message.