This July 4th, Farm Sanctuary will be hosting our annual Pignics in Orland, California and Watkins Glen, New York where visitors will have a chance to try meatless hotdogs and other vegan treats, and to meet rescued farm animals. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has sent out a press release warning consumers to be careful about pathogens in meat. "Safe food handling is always important, but during peak grilling season in the warm summer months, there needs to be an increased awareness of safe food handling practices," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Of course, eating plants instead of animals is a good way to reduce the risk of contamination since plants don’t produce fecal pathogens.

Hopefully you can come to a Farm Sanctuary Pignic, but if not, please think about bringing a Pignic to your town by hosting a vegan event for July 4th, or by bringing veggie dogs, veggie burgers, veggie chicken patties, veggie skewers, etc. to other festivities. In 1776, American revolutionaries resolved to throw off the tyranny and exploitation of their overlords. Today, we can make a statement against factory farming and the cruel exploitation of the animals raised for food by declaring our independence from eating animal products.