“Go vegan for duck’s sake”.

That’s the message plastered across a billboard which sprung up in Reading yesterday.

Animal Justice Project are behind the stunt, hoping to reach an estimated 103,000 people driving along Caversham Road.

Campaigns Manager Ayrton Cooper said: "The Animal Welfare Act was put in place to supposedly protect farmed animals, yet millions of commercially farmed ducks held in vast, industrial sheds within the UK are not afforded even the most basic protections.

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“This is despite clear acknowledgement by scientists that ducks should be provided with open water as well as a sound legal basis to require this. “

They continued: “We are calling upon the government to ban this cruel industry. There is no place in Britain, or anywhere else for it.”

The group claimed open water is vital for duck well-being by improving and maintaining health.

Animal Justice Project said the vast majority of ducks slaughtered each year are reared in industrial sheds with tens of thousands of others and no access to bathing water.

Billboards like the one in Reading have been put up in five locations in the UK.