Butcher’s shop named 2021’s Liegebeest
The Keurslager has the dubious honor of winning the ‘Liegebeest van 2021’ award. The butchers’ association says that its members care about animal welfare, but in practice there are simply broiler chickens in the display cases of Keurslager shops. That is why Keurslager received the most votes in the election, which is held every year by Wakker Dier.
‘Many people trust their Keurslager and think that animal welfare is well taken care of there. They clearly feel cheated now that they know that broiler chicken may be lying in the display case,’ says Wakker Dier spokesperson Kenny Oostrik.
Marketing
According to the organization, this is due to the claims made by Keurslager on its website. The butchers’ association promises that it ‘cares about animal welfare’ and sets ‘high quality standards’. Part of Keurslager’s marketing campaign, which leads many people to think that Keurslager sells organic meat, or at least meat with many stars for animal welfare. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Broiler turkey in baby food
Every year, Wakker Dier presents the ‘Liegebeest van het jaar’ award. The aim: to wake people up. It has an effect: Olvarit replaced broiler turkey in the jars of baby food with turkey raised under better welfare conditions after being nominated. Meatlovers was also shocked by a nomination from Wakker Dier and adjusted its claims about stress-free calves.
So-called
Other nominees for this year’s Liegebeest award were the PlanetProof dairy certification, which supposedly sets strict animal welfare requirements, and the Dutch poultry sector, which lied about the welfare of broiler chickens in an advertising campaign paid for with taxpayers’ money.
Without a certification label
Joep Klaver, director of the Vereniging van Keurslagers, told RTL Nieuws that there is no truth in Wakker Dier’s accusations. The association consists entirely of independent entrepreneurs who decide for themselves what they put in their display cases. According to him, these may also be local products that do meet high animal welfare standards but whose producers do not apply for a certification label.
