PETA Requests Roadside Memorial After Chickens Die in Lorry Fire

15 October 2025

PETA Requests Roadside Memorial After Chickens Die in Lorry Fire

Kelvedon, Essex – Following reports that hundreds of chickens have burned to death in a lorry that caught fire on the A12 near Kelvedon, PETA sent a letter to Essex County Council asking for approval to erect a memorial at the scene, to highlight that everyone can help prevent animals from dying terrifying deaths by going vegan.

The image is also available here. Credit: PETA.

“For nothing more than a fleeting moment of taste, these chickens suffered an agonising death during an already terrifying trip, which was in all likelihood to the abattoir,” says PETA Vice President Elisa Allen. “PETA’s roadside memorial would encourage people to help prevent further tragedies for gentle birds and all animals by leaving them in peace and going vegan.”

Chickens form complex social structures, dream when they sleep, and worry about the future, just as humans do – but in the meat industry, they’re crammed into sheds by the tens of thousands and bred to grow such unnaturally large upper bodies that their legs often become crippled under the weight. At the slaughterhouse, they’re shackled upside down, their throats are slit, and they’re scalded in defeathering tanks – sometimes while still conscious. PETA’s free vegan starter kit can help anyone looking to make the switch.

PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat” – points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits. For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk or follow PETA on Facebook, X, TikTok, or Instagram.

Contact:

Lucy Watson +44 (0) 20 7837 6327; [email protected]

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