Tyson Foods, Inc. has been touting its line of antibiotic-free chicken as part of a $70 million advertising campaign. But, competitive poultry producers are upset that the Arkansas-based company has been making false claims about its product.
Calling themselves the Truthful Labeling Coalition, Perdue Farms, Sanderson Farms Inc., Gold’n Plump Poultry Inc. and Foster Poultry Farms accused Tyson of displaying misleading advertising claims in violation of federal and state law and sent a letter to Tyson asking the company to pull its ads.
At issue is Tyson’s use of an animal medication called ionophores, commonly added to poultry feed to help prevent an intestinal parasite that can lead to lower body weight or death in poultry, causing economic loss to producers.
Last month, Tyson agreed to stop using a version of its antibiotic-free labels on its chicken products after the U.S. Department of Agriculture concluded it had awarded the label mistakenly, because the company was still using medication that it characterized as antibiotics. Tyson has also agreed to amend its advertising.
[via The Wall Street Journal]
