Coles uses Curtis Stone to spruik RSPCA approved chicken
Coles has kicked off a new campaign faced by brand ambassador celebrity chef Curtis Stone promoting the supermarket’s RSPCA approved chicken.
The commercial features Stone explaining what RSPCA approved chicken is set against images of people purchasing, cooking and eating chicken.
The move to RSPCA Approved chicken will come at no added cost to customers, said Coles chief operating officer John Durkan.
In a statement he said: “Coles has listened carefully to what customers are telling us about animal welfare and the quality of the food they feed their families. We’ve taken this feedback to our farmers and growers and worked with them to deliver a better product without adding to the cost of the weekly shop.
“We started with no added hormones beef nearly 3 years ago and then followed with cage-free Coles Brand eggs; sow stall-free fresh pork and sustainable sea food. And now we have gone further and made all our Coles brand fresh chicken – including bbq chickens from the deli – RSPCA Approved, again at no extra cost to customers.”
Stone said in a statement: “Whether you are growing fruit and vegies or producing pork and chicken, the fact is the more care you take in growing the plant or raising the animal the better tasting product you’re going to get on your plate. Australian farmers already produce some of the best food in the world and I’m delighted that they are once again leading the way in helping Australian families serve up better quality, better tasting food.
“Working with Coles to help Australia grow is important to me as an Australian and as a chef and I’m really proud to be a part of the work we are doing to support Aussie farmers and feed Aussie families.”
The supermarket’s RSPCA Approved chickens are raised in barns farmed to the RSPCA Approved Farming Scheme Standards which allow the chickens “to freely exhibit natural behaviours such as perching, scratching and foraging”. The farms are assessed by RSPCA assessors at least four times in the first 12 months and twice a year in following years to ensure the standards are being maintained.
The chicken will be sourced from 170 farms across Australia, Coles will work with suppliers such as Hazeldenes, Cordina Farms, Baida, Nichols Poultry and Golden Cockerel.
Heather Neil, chief executive of RSPCA Australia said in a statement: “The RSPCA is proud to be working with Coles and its suppliers to make the switch to sourcing only RSPCA Approved chicken under its own brand of fresh chicken. The lives of millions of meat chickens will be improved.
“It’s an exciting time for Australian consumers, who over the years have been demanding more and more high welfare food in a growing trend which is directly benefiting the welfare of farm animals.”
Woolworths committed to phasing out the sale of caged eggs in its stores in October when it signed a deal with Jamie Oliver.
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Stocking density for RSPCA hens is 9 birds/m² and recommended max of 5000 per shed. Previously sitting between 11-14 birds/m² and no limit in a shed.
Max for free range certification it is 5 birds/m² with a maximum of 1500 per shed.
That is quite a difference.
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I am absolutely appalled at the RSPCA and the latest Curtis Stone ad for Coles that the RSPCA has endorsed ( RSPCA – P- prevention have you lost sight of the P !!!)
The RSPCA is a community based charity that works to prevent cruelty to animals by actively promoting their care and protection”FROM YOUR WEBSITE!!
He actually says in the ad that the chickens live better so so they taste better!! Shame on you!! You should disassociate your organisation from this ad to maintain any shred of integrity and public support you currently have!
How dare you claim to be an organisation that stands up for the rights of animals that supports them being cooked and eaten (apparently in a nice humane way!!
Ann Marie
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RSPCA going the same way as the Heart Foundation and their once revered ‘tick’.
You will kill the goose RSPCA, but I presume humanely.
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CRAZY – what is up for the RSPCA. Do they receive money to roll over for this????
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The RSPCA seal of approval which allows celebrity chefs “to freely exhibit natural behaviours such as perching, scratching and foraging” while recommending the very best BBQ chicken you can buy.
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According to ABS figures, assaults are in decline so there is no real need for a campaign.
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yep, one less bird per sq metre than the code of practice, that will make them taste so much better! And all that foraging , scratching and exhibiting natural behaviours inside an overcrowded sticking shed? Oh yes, I can just imagine the difference….. what a load of chicken shit RSPCA
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You may complain folks but this is progress on animal welfare in a big way considering how much chicken Coles actually sells.
And being vegetarian I’m afraid just doesn’t help – even if it makes you feel better about yourself (and perhaps a bit righteous too) – the number of people consuming meat, including chicken, grows in Australia every year. Surely it’s better that those people are buying meat which has been farmed in a more ethical way?
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This comment saddens me tremendously.
When Coles are the only supermarket with RSPCA approval, why do they get criticised and NOT ONE mention of Woolworths, aldi or iga.
At what point did Australia and the marketing industry become so negative and blinkered?
Progress is progress. And progress in very big business is very big progress.
While I’m at it. Good work from Big red. Especially compared to that pile of old Shite BMF has just served up for Aldi. Lame joke. Wrong demographic. Tedious execution. Watch the sales figures…
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What injustice! Go to a large chicken farm and ask the farmer which method is more cruel! They will tell you they are both just as cruel! 5000 chickens in a shed??? Space isn’t the only thing to consider! Ever heard of the ‘pecking order’? Chickens kill each other in this sort of environment! It’s not natural for them to be in this close proximity to each other in such huge numbers! The transportation method is the same, the handling methods are the same, the slaughtering methods are the same! The RSPCA is a sham and doing more damage than good! Now we can continue animal cruelty with a clear conscience! This is not progress- this is going backwards! Chicken farmers think this “free range” “barn laid” thing is a joke! “But it’s what the public wants!” Can’t you see people- you are being taken for a ride! Fools!
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RSPCA supports Coles for killing chickens wat??????
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