FOOD FIGHTS

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, September 1998:

British activists David
Morris and Helen Steel on July 27
appealed the “McLibel” verdict won
against them by McDonald’s
Restaurants in June 1997, at huge public
relations cost, especially after the
trial judge ruled that even though Morris
and Steel made some inaccurate charges
about other McDonald’s practices, the
firm does pay low wages and is “culpably
responsible” for causing animal suffering
by purchasing meat and eggs from
animals raised in close confinement.
Buckeye Egg Farm Inc., formerly
known as AgriGeneral, in early
July quietly dropped a lawsuit it filed last
year against the Ohio Public Interest
Research Group under a so-called
“food libel” statute, but did not explain
why. The “food libel” case was brought
after Ohio PIRG sued Buckeye for
allegedly selling old eggs as fresh.

PETA and the American
Civil Liberties Union won a verdict for
free speech in Syracuse near the end of
July when the city backed away from a
possible lawsuit and issued a permit for
PETA members to protest against an
appearance by the Oscar Mayer
Weinermobile at the Burnet Park Zoo.
PETA members costumed as pigs are
shadowing the Weinermobile this summer
as it makes rounds of 74 cities.
Syracuse vegetarian activist
Patrick Fish on July 15 sued the
W e n d y ’ s restaurant chain for including
gelatin of animal origin in “veggie pita”
sandwiches until embarrassed by bad
publicity in mid-1997. V e g e t a r i a n
Awareness Network president L i g e
Weill said his group may follow the Fish
case with a class action on behalf of others
who were misled into consuming animal
byproducts.