Vampire Dairies’ Paul Wesley ‘Dismayed’ with Publix Over Caged Hens

Lakeland, FL — As the ongoing dispute between animal rights activists and Publix Super Markets over the grocer’s sale of eggs from caged chickens continues, actor Paul Wesley has joined the chorus of those demanding a change.

Best known for his role as Stefan Salvatore in “The Vampire Diaries,” Wesley wrote an open letter to Publix CEO Todd Jones on Wednesday. In the letter, Wesley expressed his “dismay at Publix’s lack of action to The Humane Society of the United States’ common-sense request for Publix to join virtually every major restaurant chain, food manufacturer, food service company, and grocery chain, in committing to a timeline for eliminating the sale of eggs from caged chickens.”

The humane society contends Publix is the only one of North America’s largest 25 grocers to have not committed to a timeline to be 100-percent cage-free. The society’s push to get Publix to commit has been going on for a while. Earlier this year, the society launched an online initiative targeting Publix in hopes of nudging the grocery to adopting a policy. It has since taken out full-page ads in newspapers and run television commercials blasting the Lakeland-based chain.

• See also: Humane Society Blasts Publix Over Caged Hen, Publix Fires Back

As to why the issue is such a major concern for the Humane Society, Paul Shapiro, vice president of animal farm protection, offered some insights in a previous interview.

“Locking birds in cages is among the most abusive types of factory farming in our nation,” Shapiro told Patch. “Each caged bird has less space than an iPad on which to live for her entire life. It’s hard to imagine a more miserable existence.”

Shapiro said he’s unsure just why Publix hasn’t adopted a policy to end the sale of eggs from caged hens, but insists “the company can and should do better.”

Wesley said hens kept in cages are forced to live out their entire lives in spaces that are smaller than a "thin sheet of paper."

“She’s nearly immobilized, unable to spread her wings, and is prevented from engaging in behaviors that allow even a remotely decent life,” he wrote.

Publix spokesman Brian West told Patch Thursday that his company’s stand on the issue hasn’t changed over the past few months. Back in May, West said Publix does take animal welfare quite seriously.

“We have been diligently working with our egg suppliers, industry leaders, governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations to better understand the feasibility of converting our shell egg supply to completely cage-free while meeting customer demand, remaining affordable, and maintaining animal health and safety,” West said.

Even so, there are mitigating factors Publix needs to address, he stressed.

“The higher costs and retail price associated with cage-free eggs, the speed of this industry change, current WIC regulations preventing the purchase of cage-free eggs, and the potential inability of smaller farmers to make the large necessary investments causing them to go out of business,” West said. “We understand the high standards expected of us and will continue to work to provide our customers with quality products and a variety of choices, while ensuring food safety and animal welfare.”

At present, Publix does offer a number of egg brands that are cage-free, West said. Those brands include Publix GreenWise, Eggland’s Best, 4 Grain, Country Hen, Handsome Brook Farm and Pete & Gerry’s.

Publix, West said, is also dedicated to allocating more shelf space to cage-free options “as our customers purchase more cage-free eggs.”

“Once again, we are confident that our customers will lead us to the right product assortment with their purchases,” he said. “We appreciate the trust our customers place in us to do the right thing and we work hard to live up to that responsibility. We are committed to moving forward with this effort.”

For more information about the Humane Society of the United States’ cage-free effort, visit the organization’s website.

Wesley’s full letter can be read here.

Photo by Gage Skidmore via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)