 Rochester Institute of Technology graduate Adam Durand will speak Thursday at the RIT premiere of the documentary "Wegmans Cruelty". Durand is President of Compassionate Consumers and was one of three filmmakers involved in creating the documentary. The film, an investigation into Wegmans Egg Farm in Wolcott, NY, has garnered the attention of media outlets and animal advocacy groups nationwide since its release in July. Durand graduated from RIT with High Honors in 2001. The RIT Vegetarian Education Group (RIT-VEG) is sponsoring the screening and talk.
Date: Thursday, 27 October
Time: 7:00 pm
Place: RIT Golisano Building, 20 Lomb Memorial Drive, Auditorium 1400
Durand is one of three Compassionate Consumers investigators currently charged with trespassing and burglary for their part in the making of "Wegmans Cruelty". While at Wegmans Egg Farm investigators found hens covered with feces and open sores, birds forced to sleep atop decomposed corpses, beak mutilations, and hens drowning in liquid manure. Investigators rescued nine hens who were dying or near death.
"I feel that RIT students who see this film will be shocked by what is going on at Wegmans' farm," said RIT student Julie Rothman. "I couldn’t believe my eyes when I first watched it."
In recent months, screenings of "Wegmans Cruelty" in Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse have attracted hundreds of people. Last month a screening of the film at The Little Theatres in downtown Rochester drew over 100 people.
Since the film's release the campaign headed by Compassionate Consumers has grown steadily. Groups in Ithaca, Syracuse, Buffalo, Baltimore, and elsewhere have all asked Wegmans to stop the cruel use of battery cages at its Wolcott facility.
National organizations have also taken notice of the cruelty at Wegmans Egg Farm. In July, The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), the nation’s largest animal welfare organization, urged Wegmans to phase out battery cages and discontinue the use of misleading egg advertising. The HSUS also noted that some of Wegmans' largest competitors have already stopped selling battery-cage eggs. This year alone two of the nation’s three largest organic food chains, Whole Foods and Wild Oats decided to go cage free.
Compassionate Consumers is asking that Wegmans Egg Farm cease the use of battery cages and go cage-free. In September University of Rochester Dining Services decided to stop the use of battery cage eggs in foods prepared on campus. Danny Wegman, CEO of Wegmans Food Markets, is a Senior Trustee at UR.
The film is subtitled and an interpreter will be provided for deaf and hard-of-hearing people. |
