The eye-opening new PETA Asia investigation into Vina Prauden – a Vietnamese down supplier for leading fashion brands such as Gap Inc., H&M, UNIQLO, Lacoste etc. – reveals horrific scenes as ducks’ throats were slit while they were still conscious.
The workers at facilities that provide down for Nam Vu – a supplier to GUESS and other companies –chopped off live ducks’ feet, among other atrocities.
Down from these facilities is later sold under the deceptively named “Responsible Down Standard”, which does nothing to stop suppliers from harming animals and serves only to dupe well-meaning shoppers.
Further investigated by Apparel Resources, it was found that Prauden, Korea’s premium down material brand and the parent company of Vina Prauden, is accredited with all related material safety standards and animal welfare regulations such as RDS, IDFL Supply Chain Traceability Audit, and CFDIA Non-Live-Plucked Products Guarantee.
“PRAUDEN believes that truly reliable down is made of down & feather collected from waterfowl raised under strict animal welfare regulations as a by-product of the food industry,” reads an official statement of the company and this certainly doesn’t go with what PETA Asia has documented.
At a slaughterhouse that provides down for Vina Prauden, PETA Asia investigators documented a worker violently grabbing ducks and forcing their legs into shackles before dragging them through an electrified water bath meant to paralyze them.
A worker slit the ducks’ throats while they were still conscious, and ducks were seen moving for at least one minute afterward. The slaughterhouse owner told investigators that her employees never check for signs of consciousness before stabbing ducks in the neck and slaughtering them, PETA reports.
At slaughterhouses inside villagers’ homes – suppliers to Nam Vu – the birds were tossed to the ground and workers cut off their feet while they were still conscious and struggling.
“Shoppers at H&M, Gap, GUESS, and other big-name stores should assume that down in their products came from tortured birds,” commented PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman, adding, “PETA Asia has exposed the Responsible Down Standard as a sham that doesn’t protect animals, and we encourage everyone to shun all down in favor of warm and cozy vegan clothing that leaves animals in peace.”
This incident has again raised a question on leading fashion brands’ sustainability efforts where they claim to be ‘greener’ in their supply chain.
