Exposed: Despite ‘Responsible Down Standards’, Farms Still Live-Plucking Geese
In 2012, PETA US released footage of workers ripping live geese’s feathers out, a process known as “live plucking”. In the years that followed, companies faced a loss of confidence from consumers, so they came up with international standards claiming to ensure “responsible”, “non live-plucked” down. But when PETA US and PETA Asia recently got inside farms connected to certified and “responsible” companies, they uncovered shocking cruelty that sheds doubt on these standards and disturbing evidence that will shake consumers’ confidence in the word “responsible”.
Plucked Alive
Did you know that 80 per cent of the world’s down and feathers used for items like jackets, sleeping bags and bedding come from China? PETA US and PETA Asia set out to visit farms across China to see firsthand how those feathers are obtained. Investigators saw workers rip geese’s feathers out – leaving open, bloody wounds – while the birds were fully conscious. Many struggled and cried out in terror and pain as their feathers were torn out of their skin, while others just froze, paralyzed with fear.
To prevent the geese from fleeing, workers stepped on their delicate wings and necks and tightly bound their feet together. They even put them in chokeholds while ripping out their feathers and swung them by their wings. After they were plucked bare, the geese cried out as they ran back to their flocks.
Many geese endure this torture multiple times before finally being slaughtered.
And there was more: farms left sick and injured chicks, geese and ducks to die slowly. Dead birds were found decaying in crates and ponds or tossed outside like trash.
A single goose produces just 60 grams of micro-feathers and down. One farm admitted to producing 15 tonnes of live-plucked down every year – that’s 250,000 live pluckings per year.
Deception and Dishonesty
International certifications, including the “Non Live-Plucked Products Guarantee” and the “Responsible Down Standard” (RDS), are advertised to assure consumers that down and feathers from live-plucked birds do not end up in products.
But when PETA US spoke with suppliers for these so-called “responsible” and “non live-pluck” companies, they admitted to buying and selling live-plucked down, and one buyer even bragged about misleading customers.
“The plucking is done in secret; we’re unwilling to pluck openly.”
—Down industry representative
Companies understand that most consumers would never buy live-plucked down if it were openly labeled as such. One industry representative remarked, “We advertised that it’s all plucked after slaughter – nobody dares to buy it if you say it’s live-plucked”. Their solution? Hide and mislabel their live-plucked down so that people will buy it. Another industry representative admitted, “Most of the organizations say live-pluck is forbidden. … So it’s not open”.
‘Responsible’ Practices: Caught in the Act
The RDS – which claims that it “safeguards the welfare of geese” – actually allows RDS-certified companies to buy and sell live-plucked feathers.
On one farm where PETA US saw workers rip geese’s feathers out, leaving them bloody, the manager admitted to supplying live-plucked down to The Sea Feather Ltd Co in Lu’an, China – an RDS-certified and Non Live-Plucked Products Guarantee company. Sea Feather sells to US-based Hollander Sleep Products, which sells bedding in stores and online via Amazon.
Products made with feathers and down from live-plucked birds are exported throughout the world to be sold to unsuspecting consumers. So if you’re considering buying down bedding or a down jacket, sleeping bag or pillow, please remember the birds who need their feathers and choose a cruelty-free option instead. Join us in giving geese the thumbs-up and giving down the thumbs-down.
Animals Are Suffering in Laboratories – Help Save Them Now
