10/06/2026
๐๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ป๐๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ก๐ผ๐ ๐๐ป๐บ๐ถ๐๐
When WOOLWORTHS MyDifference invited Beauty Without Cruelty South Africa to share our impact story, we were genuinely grateful.
Through MyDifference, Woolworths customers help support the BWC Troopers programme: youth education, animal advocacy, nature outings, vegan meals, public service and practical compassion.
These are the two stories we submitted:
๐ฆ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ญ: ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ง๐ต๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต ๐ก๐ฎ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ถ
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1CeE6uWEpU/
๐ฆ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฎ: ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ฑ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐, ๐๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1LM9C9tCSq/
So yes, we thank Woolworths.
But gratitude does not mean silence.
Some people may ask why BWC can thank Woolworths on one hand, while also challenging them publicly on animal welfare.
The answer is simple: accountability is not enmity.
We are not enemies of Woolworths. We are an animal rights organisation. When animals are harmed, when ethical claims need scrutiny, or when public trust is involved, we have a responsibility to speak.
BWC engaged Woolworths for many months around the use of COโ gas stunning in parts of the pork supply chain. We raised concerns, shared information, asked questions and tried to engage constructively.
The protest did not happen overnight.
It came after months of discussion, growing concern, and the understanding that polite conversations alone were not enough to create the urgency animals deserve.
We are fundamentally opposed to the gassing of pigs.
Pigs are intelligent, sensitive, social animals. They are not invisible bodies behind packaging. They are sentient beings who experience fear, distress and suffering.
And when a retailer benefits from ethical trust, public loyalty, sustainability messaging, and even association with BWC-approved products, that retailer must also accept ethical scrutiny.
That is not hypocrisy.
Hypocrisy would be accepting support and staying silent.
Hypocrisy would be celebrating MyDifference while ignoring the suffering of animals in supply chains.
Hypocrisy would be wearing the language of compassion while avoiding difficult conversations.
We can be grateful and still be principled.
We can collaborate and still disagree.
We can thank Woolworths customers for supporting BWC, while still asking Woolworths to do better.
In fact, this is what South Africa needs more of: ethical relationships where friends, partners and stakeholders hold each other accountable.
Because it is often better when your own friends tell you the truth.
BWC will always recognise the good where it exists.
But we will also continue to challenge Woolworths, and any other company, where animals are harmed, where ethical claims are unclear, or where public trust demands deeper honesty.
Accountability is not hatred.
Accountability is not cancellation.
Accountability is how trust survives.
That is not contradiction.
That is integrity.