United Colors of Benetton thinks it can continue to get away with torturing bunnies.

Plucking angora rabbits of their long, soft fur for mass-produced jumpers, scarves and hats causes untold suffering and trauma to the animals. That's why hundreds of thousands of us successfully pushed clothing retailers like FCUK, Asos, Zara, and Topshop to halt production of all angora products last year.

In response to growing consumer pressure, Benetton told us that it would start withdrawing angora products from its stores. Except that hasn't happened at all. Instead, its website still insists that harvesting fur from the backs of living animals is ethical. Now, it's released a number of angora wool knitware items for its Spring 2015 line. These bunnies are suffering for Benetton's corporate profits, and it has to stop.

Tell Benetton to save the bunnies! Ban angora products immediately.

The Italy-based global retailer is trying to get the best of both worlds. One day, Benetton tells its clientele who don't want to see angora anywhere on its shelves that it is gradually removing the products from its stores. The next,
it's releasing a whole new line of angora clothing while mumbling something about 'ethically sourced materials' and 'natural, certified shearing.'

We know the conditions that these rabbits really endure -- workers in China were secretly filmed by PETA plucking angora rabbits while they scream. Plucking a rabbit without causing harm takes up to two weeks of gently removing the loosened hair, but here it takes only a few, violent minutes. Rabbits can have the fur painfully torn from their skin or they are tied to boards and roughly sheared, which is a terrifying experience for these timid animals. 90% of all angora fur comes from China where there is no oversight and no penalties for animal abuse, injury or death.

After this torturous experience, which the rabbits endure every three months, many of them appeared to go into shock, lying motionless inside their tiny, filthy cages. That doesn't sound very 'natural' to us.

Benetton can't get away with pretending to care about bunnies.
Commit to a full ban of angora fur once and for all.

Benetton knows we're coming for it.
300,000 of us came for Zara. It banned angora. Another 100,000 came for French Connection UK. It banned it too. We came for Asos, Topshop...every shop saved the bunnies. Spanish giant Inditex even donated its unsold angora garments to Syrian refugees.

That's why we can't let Benetton get away with this. All these massive victories won't count for a thing if we let one High Street shop back in the rabbit-fur market.

Join us and help save the bunnies!

**********

More information:

World's Largest Clothing Retailer Helps Syrian Refugees and Angora Bunnies in One Compassionate Move!, PETA, Feb 9, 2015

Retailers who have dropped angora - the list, PETA