Mercy for Animals held a news conference in Little Rock today to accuse a Delaware poultry grower that contracts with Tyson Foods, McGinnis Farms, of abusive practices.

Mercy for Animals released a video that it said illustrates chicks bred to grow too fast crippled by their weight and careless and cruel treatment of animals. The group called on Tyson to adopt meaningful welfare policies.

MFA posted its secretly made video at this website.

MFA’s president, Nathan Runkle, said in a news release, "Tyson Foods has not only the power, but also the ethical responsibility to end the worst forms of cruelty to animals in its supply chain.”

Tyson issued a prepared response:

Animal well-being is a top priority for us. We do not tolerate improper animal treatment and take claims of animal abuse very seriously. We are investigating this matter.

We have programs and policies in place to protect the health and well-being of all our animals. This includes the Tyson FarmCheck™ program that involves third-party auditors who check on the farm for such things as animal access to food and water, human-animal interaction and worker training.

We’re continually looking for ways to improve how we operate and this includes animal well-being. We’re constantly researching new ways to keep our chickens healthy and safe.

Our farmers work hard to raise healthy birds, however, sometimes chickens – just like people – get sick. At the time this video was shot this past spring, this farm had birds that were sick with a respiratory illness. As a result, what was shown in the video is not typical for this or any other farm. It was also not a food safety issue.