East Bay Business Times: Lunardi's targeted by animal rights group / Don't Forget to call Lunardi's tomorrow at (650) 588-7507!

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Lunardi's targeted by animal rights group

 

East Bay Business Times

December 20th

By David Goll

 

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Online at http://eastbay.bizjournals.com/eastbay/stories/2006/12/18/daily29.html

 

Thank the East Bay Business Times for covering this important issue:

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Upscale grocery chain Lunardi's is the latest retailer in the area to be

targeted by East Bay Animal Advocates.

 

Members of the Pleasanton-based group that advocates on behalf of farm animal

welfare plan to pass out informational leaflets at Lundardi's newest store in

Danville during the holiday shopping rush on Dec. 23. They are attempting to

persuade officials of the South San Francisco-based supermarket chain to stop

selling eggs provided by suppliers that use so-called " battery " cages to confine

chickens.

 

Christine Morrissey, executive director of East Bay Animal Advocates, contends

the cages are inhumane because they are small and overcrowded, not allowing the

chickens adequate space to engage in normal, healthy behavior.

 

A spokesman for Lunardi's did not return a phone message seeking comment on the

leafleting. Morrissey said members of her organization plan eventually to pass

out leaflets at all eight Lundardi's stores in the Bay Area, including one in

Walnut Creek.

 

The organization has also set up a Web site on the issue, called

www.lunardisabuse.com

 

The Danville store just became a Lunardi's in September after being sold by

Albany-based Andronico's Inc. Andronico's was targeted for leafleting by East

Bay Animal Advocates earlier this year and officials agreed to stop selling eggs

produced by chickens in battery cages in October. The company operates eight

Andronico's Market locations in the Bay Area, including four in Berkeley.

 

Morrissey said her organization has also contacted officials of Pleasanton-based

supermarket giant Safeway Inc., whom she said wrote a letter to their egg

suppliers requesting they no longer house their chickens in such cages.

 

Earlier this year, Safeway established a committee of company officials and

outside animal-welfare experts to consider a wide array of issues related to the

topic.