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For Immediate Release:
October 27, 2026

Contact:
Alex Payne 202-483-7382

Augusta, Ga. –

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, it’s time to face the facts. PETA’s “Hell on Wheels” hyper-realistic turkey transport truck will roll into Augusta on Thursday to confront shoppers with the haunting reality of what turkeys endure on their way to the slaughterhouse. The eye-catching truck will stop outside The Fresh Market on Washington Road, where anyone within earshot will hear actual recordings of turkeys’ cries, accompanied by a subliminal message urging shoppers to spare turkeys by going vegan.

PETA’s “Hell on Wheels” is on tour across 38 cities in 16 states to revup compassion for the tens of millions of turkeys killed every year for the holidays alone—and to encourage grocery shoppers to choose from the cornucopia of vegan roasts available in stores and online, including Field Roast’s Hazelnut & Cranberry Plant-Based Roast, Gardein’s Plant-Based Turk’y Roast, and Tofurky’s Plant-Based Roast & Wild Rice Stuffing.

Where: The Fresh Market, 2701 Washington Road, Suite 12, Augusta

When: Thursday, October 29, 12 noon

“Turkeys are curious, spirited individuals, not ingredients, and they would give thanks not to be carved up for a fleeting holiday meal,” says PETA President Tracy Reiman. “PETA’s ‘Hell on Wheels’ truck reminds shoppers that it’s easy to host a compassionate Thanksgiving by choosing delicious vegan ingredients that let turkeys and all animals live in peace.”

Credit: PETA

Why: In nature, turkeys spend their days caring for their young, building nests, foraging for food, taking dust baths, and roosting in trees. In the meat industry, workers cram turkeys into filthy sheds before loading them onto transport trucks for a frightening journey to a slaughterhouse, where workers slit their throats. Thankfully, PETA offers a free vegan starter kit with recipes and shopping tips for anyone looking to make the compassionate switch.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat or abuse in any other way”—points out that when it comes to the ability to feel pain, hunger, and thirst, a turkey is a dog is a boy. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.