American Egg Board CEO Steps Down After Emails Reveal Machinations Against Vegan Competitor

Joanne Ivy — the CEO of the American Egg Board, the egg lobby group best recognized for its "Incredible, Edible Egg" campaign —has stepped down from her post as of late September, a few months earlier than her scheduled retirement on December 31.

Ivy's early departure is thought to be related to the discovery of email documents which detailed plans to villainize egg-free rivals, particularly Hampton Creek, the maker of Just Mayo, a popular vegan mayonnaise product. In documents obtained by The Guardian, Hampton Creek's attempt to provide a vegan substitute for eggs was called "a crisis and major threat to the future."

As part of its campaign against its egg-free foe, AEB allegedly planned to "target" publications that had given positive coverage to Hampton Creek, as well as gain support from animal rights advocate Temple Grandin and Food Network personality Ree Drummond — both declined.

The AEB also tried to keep Whole Foods from selling the startup's products on its shelves, but failed.