PETA Gets Nabisco To 'Free' Animals On Boxes Of Crackers

(RTTNews) - The animals on Barnum's Animals crackers are finally "free," thanks to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals or PETA.

PETA has forced Nabisco to redesign the packaging of Barnum's Animals crackers to show animals are free to roam in their natural habitats instead of showing them in cages.

For more than a century, Nabisco's Barnum's Animals crackers have been sold in boxes that depict zebras, lions, gorillas, elephants, and other animals caged in circus boxcars.

However, PETA suggested a new design with a request to update the packing, which was accepted by Nabisco's parent company, Mondelez International.

"The new box for Barnum's Animals perfectly reflects that our society no longer tolerates caging and chaining exotic animals for circus shows. PETA is celebrating this redesign just as we've celebrated the closure of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and an end to the use of wild animals in many other circuses," PETA said.

The redesigned boxes retain the original red and yellow coloring as well as the "Barnum's Animals Crackers" lettering. They now feature a zebra, elephant, lion, giraffe and gorilla wandering side-by-side in a grassland, with the outline of acacia trees seen in the background.

"When PETA reached out about Barnum's, we saw this as another great opportunity to continue to keep this brand modern and contemporary," said Jason Levine, Mondelez's chief marketing officer for North America.

The crackers' namesake circus - Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey - closed down in May 2017 due to weakening attendance and high operating costs, after operating for 146 years.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or ASPCA, PETA, and other animal groups had earlier sued the circus in 2000, alleging that it violated the Endangered Species Act by its treatment of Asian elephants in its circus.

Nabisco has been making Barnum's Animals crackers since 1902. More than 40 million packages of Barnum's Animals Crackers are sold each year, both in the United States and also exported to 17 countries worldwide.