For immediate release:
27 August 2024

Contact:
Sara Groves202-483-7382

Grand Rapids, Michigan. –

Guests heading to the Forest Lake Restaurant on NWFourth Street will hear a lot on Thursday when “Hell on wheels“” – PETA’s life-sized, hyper-realistic pig truck covered in images of real pigs crammed into crates on their way to slaughter – will bombard them with actual recorded sounds of the animals’ panicked screams, along with a subliminal message every 10 seconds encouraging people to go vegan.

“Behind every piece of bacon or barbecue sandwich is a once-living, sensitive individual crammed into a truck for a horrific, miserable journey to death,” said PETA Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA’s ‘Hell on Wheels’ truck is a call to all pork eaters to remember that the meat industry is cruel to them and that the only good meal is a vegan one.”

Where: Outside Forest Lake, 1201 NWFourth St., Grand Rapids

When: Thursday, August 29, 12 noon

Why: In the meat industry, workers cut off piglets’ tails, cut their teeth with pliers, and castrate the males – all without painkillers. When it’s time to slaughter, they are crammed into trucks and transported hundreds of miles in all weathers, without food, water, or rest. Each year, more than a million pigs die and at least 40,000 more are injured during transport to the slaughterhouse. It’s common for pigs to suffer heat exhaustion on the way to the slaughterhouse, or even freeze to the sides of the trucks.

PETA—whose motto includes, “Animals are not meant to be eaten by us”—points out that every animal is someone, and offers free empathy kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. PETA’s free vegan starter kit is full of tips to help anyone who wants to switch to a vegan diet. For more information, visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, on facebook.or Instagram.