- [Narrator] This week, Bernie Sanders says factory farms
are a threat to America.
Jay-Z, Ruby Rose, and will.i.am invest in Impossible Foods.
Chick-fil-A announces vegan chicken.
And find out which athlete says animal cruelty
pains his heart.
All that and more on Live Kindly's Weekly Vegan News.
Vermont senator and presidential hopeful, Bernie Sanders
spoke out about the meat industry.
Naming factory farms a threat to America.
Sanders posted to Twitter sharing his thoughts
on factory farm waste with his 9.26 million followers.
He wrote: Factory farms are responsible for 1.4 trillion
pounds of animal waste in America.
Factory farms are a threat to the water we drink
and the air we breathe, and it is unbelievable to me
that the Republicans in Congress have been working overtime
to exempt factory farms from environmental laws.
99% of animal products in the U.S. come from factory farms.
The industry has been linked to environmental damage.
As a farm of 5,000 pigs can create
as much waste as a town of 20,000 people.
If untreated, this waste pollutes soil,
surface water, and oceans.
According to environment website EcoWatch,
potentially toxic chemicals, drugs and bacteria
in untreated animal waste drain off or leach through
the soils making their way in the nation's rivers,
streams, ground water, and drinking water at alarming rates,
directly impacting communities.
Vegan meat brand Impossible Foods raised 300 million dollars
in its Series E round of funding.
Backed by celebrity investors including Jay-Z, Ruby Rose,
will.i.am, Katy Perry, Trevor Noah, and Serena Williams.
This funding will be used to help the brand scale up
as it faces increase demand after the successful
Impossible Whopper launch at Burger King last month,
including the most recent funding round,
the Bill Gates backed company
has raised more than 750 million dollars.
And Reuters values the company
at an estimated two billion dollars.
Hints of celebrity interest in the plant-based meat brand
have been floating around for the past couple of years.
Katy Perry wore a burger costume to this year's Met Gala
tagging Impossible Foods on Instagram.
Harold & Kumar star Kal Penn also invested.
- Get up, we're going to White Castle.
We're starving.
- [Narrator] He appeared in White Castle
Impossible slider ads last September.
That woman Ruby Rose posted an Impossible burger summer BBQ
and Jaden Smith teamed up with the company and Umami Burger
to launch three meat-free burgers in 2017.
- [Jaden] Giving them a plant-based burger
that they can enjoy
and promote healthy living and lifestyle.
- [Narrator] Coming up, Chick-fil-A announces vegan chicken.
A Whole Foods Market location in Philadelphia
dedicated an entire freezer section to Beyond Meat.
According to a threat on Reddit,
the sign above the freezer reads: try the trend.
And the shelves are filled with plant-based
Beyond Burgers and Beyond Sausages.
Both of which are said to look, cook,
and taste like their beef and pork counterparts.
Reddit users were impressed with the store's dedication
to the vegan brand.
One person commented: The sign should have said
"taste the future" or something.
Another added: This is a store dedicating valuable space
to just a vegan product.
That is amazing progress toward a goal we all support.
Chick-fil-A is the latest fast food chain to announce
it's working on vegan options.
The chicken chain told Business Insider
that it's in the early stages of identifying
meatless options including vegan chicken.
Amanda Norris, the executive director of Chick-fil-A's menu
told Business Insider: we're definitely aware.
And I would say we're always interested
in what's happening in food,
specifically a vegetarian option or a vegan option
is something we're looking at.
Despite the public backlash
of funding anti-LGBTQ organizations.
- [Reporter] Thousands of scorned gay customers
who've been boycotting the restaurant are promising to hold
the National Same Sex Kiss Day
at Chick-fil-A's across the country.
- [Narrator] Chick-fil-A with more than 2200 locations
is still on track to become the third largest
fast food chain in U.S. sales this year.
The chicken chain's menu already features a number
of vegan options including waffle fries, hash browns,
and the recently launched kale salad.
Coming up, this race car driver will not stand
for animal cruelty.
The Discovery Channel announced a new series
that will air on its Animal Planet Network.
- Dan from Barn Sanctuary here
and I have some very exciting news for you.
Animal Planet has decided to do 12 one hour long episodes
documenting what we're doing here at the sanctuary
and showing farm animals in a different light.
- [Narrator] The new series will show viewers what life
is like for farm animals saved from slaughter and abuse.
Michigan based animal rescue organization Barn Sanctuary
will feature in the unnamed series.
Barn Sanctuary founder, Dan McKernan said in a statement:
All of us at Barn Sanctuary are thrilled to open
our barn doors to Animal Planet's millions of viewers.
This show will give farmed animals the chance to be seen
in a different light as we rescue, rehabilitate,
and provide a loving home
to abused and neglected farm animals.
The show will feature McKernan who left work in the city
to co-found Barn Sanctuary, as well as his family,
employees, and the animals they rescue.
Each of the sanctuary's residents
have their own unique backstory.
Coming from slaughter houses, family farms,
hoarding cases, and natural disasters.
Five-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton recently
spoke out about animal cruelty saying it pains his heart.
The vegan athlete widely considered one of the greatest
drivers in the history of the sport posted
on his Instagram story to his 10.9 million followers
sharing an image of a donkey pulling a cart.
Hamilton wrote: I just wish I could be there
to give this beautiful animal a hug,
take him away from his pain, and bring life into their life.
It is such a cruel world.
How can somebody do these things to other beings?
Gives me so much pain in my heart.
Hamilton adopted a vegan diet in 2017 after watching
the documentary What The Health
which looks at the link between diet and disease.
Following the change, the athlete said
he could never go back to eating meat,
saying this is the best he's ever felt in his life.
Hamilton has defended animals on numerous occasions.
In February, he shared a post from non-profit
Oceanic Preservation Society criticizing
the Icelandic government for returning to whaling practices.
In April, he criticized Canada's
annual commercial seal slaughter.
It's disgusting that governments allow this to happen.
This man attacking this seal has no heart.
I love Canada but you guys need to stop this from happening.
You're better than this.
What do you think of Lewis Hamilton's stance?
Let us know in the comments.
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for Live Kindly's Weekly Vegan News.