FIC Staff |
November 25, 2019
Three Things We’re Thankful for at the Food Integrity Campaign
As we prepare to gather around our tables with family and friends this Thanksgiving, we at the Food Integrity Campaign would like to express our gratitude for 10 years of working together to empower food system whistleblowers.
Food sits at the center of our lives, not just during the holiday season, but every day. We fight to keep the food system honest to protect workers, farmers, animals, the environment—and, ultimately, everyone who eats. FIC can’t do it alone, and that’s why our gratitude list is filled with people, the community of people who support food integrity.
- We’re thankful for our supporters! Whether through donations, petition signatures, or participation in social media, every individual supporter and every action they take helps shine light on the hidden corners of the food system. We couldn’t support truth-tellers and get the word out without you.
- We’re thankful for our organizational allies! Our recent conference, “Representing Truth in Agriculture,” highlighted how organizations focused on farm animal welfare, climate change, farmworker rights, contract agriculture reform, and more all have a stake in protecting food integrity—and that we all have a better chance of success when we work together. Partners like our conference hosts, the American University Washington School of Law, provide a crucial role training lawyers to defend whistleblowers’ rights to speak without fear of retaliation.
- We’re thankful for our whistleblower clients! Each and every one of our clients stood up against powerful forces and paid a price for telling the truth. They put their livelihoods at risk to reveal the dangers of USDA’s high speed slaughter plans, the ways that poultry companies exploit farmers and animals, and more. We’re particularly grateful for former contract poultry grower Craig Watts, this year’s recipient of the Dean Wyatt Award for Truth-Telling. Craig Watts allowed an animal welfare organization to film the conditions of his chicken flocks, and that video went viral. Craig is now a plaintiff in an historic lawsuit against the chicken company Perdue, a case that could have huge ramifications for contract growers facing retaliation and unfair treatment.
We have a lot to be thankful for this year. We wish you a happy holiday season from FIC!
