Children’s book portrays Ahold Delhaize as “villain” because of battery cages

With a children’s book portraying Ahold Delhaize as a malicious villain, animal welfare activists are putting pressure on the retail group for failing to fulfill its promises regarding battery cages.

Protest actions

The campaign is an initiative of the International Council for Animal Welfare, which wants to increase pressure on Delhaize and Albert Heijn because, according to them, parent company Ahold Delhaize has reneged on its promise to purchase 100% cage-free eggs for all brands by 2025. The company wants to postpone this commitment by seven years. Incidentally, battery cages are banned in Belgium and the Netherlands, but the problem lies in the US.

At the heart of the story is Cocotte, a cheerful chicken who confronts the greedy King Delhaize, who keeps thousands of chickens locked up in cages. The organization wants to distribute copies of the book to customers and executives of Ahold Delhaize. Protests will take place on Wednesday in front of Ahold Delhaize’s headquarters in Zaandam and the Dutch embassy in Washington DC. Influencers such as Laure Fornier (radio presenter at NRJ Belgium) and Dutch actor Elindo Avastia support the campaign.