Day: April 21, 2021

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News

Thursday 22/4 is the Official ‘Earth Day’.

Thursday 22/4 is the official ‘Earth Day’.

Official site –  https://www.earthday.org/

EARTHDAY.ORG’s mission is to diversify, educate and activate the environmental movement worldwide. Growing out of the first Earth Day in 1970, EARTHDAY.ORG is the world’s largest recruiter to the environmental movement, working with more than 75,000 partners in over 192 countries to drive positive action for our planet. 

Our world needs transformational change. It’s time for the world to hold sectors accountable for their role in our environmental crisis while also calling for bold, creative, and innovative solutions. This will require action at all levels, from business and investment to city and national government.

That’s where you come in: As an individual, you yield real power and influence as a consumer, a voter, and a member of a community that can unite for change.

Don’t underestimate your power. When your voice and your actions are united with thousands or millions of others around the world, we create a movement that is inclusive, impactful, and impossible to ignore.

Every Earth Day can drive a year of energy, enthusiasm, and commitment to create a new plan of action for our planet

About Us

Earth Day 2021: Five ways to help save the planet

https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/earth-day-2021-activities-facts-ideas-b1834277.html

Earth Day quiz: How much do you know about climate change?

https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/earth-day-quiz-climate-change-b1835097.html

Earth Day 2021 activities: How to get involved from school or home – and what the date marks

https://inews.co.uk/news/environment/earth-day-2021-activities-events-school-home-what-date-meaning-966774

Earth Day 2021: What is Earth Day? FIVE activities you can do

https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/life/1426197/Earth-Day-2021-what-is-earth-day-activities-evg

Start by going plant based food; and then move on to more.

Regards Mark

Maybe more on this very soon – have a great Earth Day.

General News

He just wanted to live…

…he just wanted to be free, but they wouldn’t let him.

https://fb.watch/50fYdJ7D6H/

#animalsavemovement #animalsavemovementindia #bhopalanimalsave

वह बस जीना चाहता था, वह बस मुक्त होना चाहता था, लेकिन वे ऐसा होने नहीं देंगे।
कृपया वीगन बने ,दयालू बने ।

And I mean…This is the fascist right to decide about the life and death of other animals that the human species has legalized.

We don’t cooperate.
We refuse to become part of this fascist system

We fight for the abolition of the enslavement of non-human animals; and for veganism, not for animal products that are in any way “more humane”.

regards and good night, Venus

Hunting

Hunters drive consecration massacres in Malta

Near Bidnija in the north of the Mediterranean island, walkers discovered two plastic bags with seven freshly shot Marsh Harriers last Sunday.
The animals belonged to a larger group of consecrations that had spent the night in the nearby fields and were caught under fire by several poachers when they left the roost.

(Footage provided by BirdLife Malta and Kurt Galea Pace).

“We assume that the men were disturbed and therefore did not take the birds with them,” said committee spokeswoman Fiona Burrows.
Colleagues from our partner association BirdLife Malta documented the terrible find on video and informed the police.
Upon closer examination of the alleged carcasses, it turned out that one of the birds was still alive. The animal was immediately taken to a veterinarian but has little chance.

The find is the previous low point of this year’s hunting season, which lasts until April 30th.
Several dozen protected migratory birds have been reported to “Birdlife Malta” since Easter, including numerous marsh harriers and lovebirds, two kestrels, a steppe harrier, a cuckoo, and a red chalk hawk.

Today we received more information about illegal kills.

Even if we are currently only working with one team on the island, we will do everything we can to secure the resting places of the birds that are now strongly migrating.
Due to the numerous violations of nature conservation and hunting law, we expect the Maltese government to put an immediate end to spring hunting, which is illegal under EU law (!!)

https://www.facebook.com/Komitee.CABS/

And I mean…So far, the useless leaders in the EU have shown very little interest in fighting these illegal Maltese massacres and have not been able to ensure that Malta, as an EU country, also participates in European hunting regulations.

A major failure is that corrupt politicians and lobbyists from the island who change and repeal ad libidum these rules, which apply to the whole EU, will not be punished.

It shouldn’t really be a problem to finance an extra special unit against the mass murderers of Malta, considering that mainly we, as the largest net payer, finance this EU practically from the beginning.

In view of this situation, the work of the Committee against Bird Murder is all the more important, and this organization should also be supported in its work.

My best regards to all, Venus

General News

Germany-Dressage horse Rosi collapses at the award ceremony and dies

April 19, 2021

Team Olympic champion Dorothee Schneider mourns the loss of her championship horse Rose.

The 17-year-old mare collapsed at the Dressage Grand Prix in Pforzheim (Germany) during the award ceremony and died on the spot. The veterinarian who was called suspected in an initial diagnosis of an avulsion of the aorta.

Rosi and her dressage rider Schneider

The essentials in brief

-At a riding tournament in Germany, a mare dies in shock.
-Dorothee Schneider’s horse collapses at the award ceremony and dies.
-The mare Rosi was 17 years old.

Minutes later, only the death of Rosi can be determined by the veterinarians present. As German media report, the cause of death has already been diagnosed: an aortic tear, which caused internal bleeding.
Dramatic.

And too disturbing for the former team Olympic champion from 2016: Schneider suffers a shock. She will be admitted to a local hospital after the events.
On Instagram, the German addresses her fans with emotional words.
«Rest in peace beloved Rosi. You are forever in our hearts », writes Dorothee Schneider.

https://www.nau.ch/sport/andere/olympionikin-trauert-ihr-dressurpferd-bricht-tot-zusammen-65909997

And I mean...It is very likely that Rosi was ridden to death.
The horse belonged to the victorious one Schneider and she could organize any fucking circus with him.
This is usually the case with dressage horses nor is it the first time that a dressage horse dies in the same way.

Her emotional farewell to Rosi is ridiculous because the relationship between a dressage horse and its owner is that of a slave and its owner.
We cannot, therefore, speak of a real partnership, because when it comes to doing business with horses, all that counts is money and a career, not the animal. Horses in the racing business are being exploited to the last drop of their blood.

It’s just perverse to rush animals over obstacles and call it a sport.
We are very saddened by the terrible death of Rosi and we are not interested in the hypocritical Instagrams of her tormentor.

My best regards to all, Venus

Environmental, General News, Uncategorized

WHO Calls for a Ban on Sale of Live Wild Mammals for Consumption.

WHO Calls for a Ban on Sale of Live Wild Mammals for Consumption (animalequality.org)

WHO Calls for a Ban on Sale of Live Wild Mammals for Consumption

To prevent the emergence of new diseases, the World Health Organization (WHO) has just called for a ban on the sale of live wild mammals in food markets worldwide.

THE RECOMMENDATION: The WHO published a guide in which they acknowledge the significant risks involved in allowing the sale and slaughter of live animals at food markets, a move that Animal Equality has been pushing for since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak over a year ago. The WHO is asking that each country’s government take action as an emergency measure to suspend the trade in live, wild, mammalian animals for consumption or breeding purposes. They’re also calling for the closure of shops within food markets that engage in such activity.

“Animals, particularly wild animals, are reported to be the source of more than 70% of all emerging infectious diseases in humans, many of which are caused by novel viruses,” the report says. “Traditional markets, where live animals are held, slaughtered and dressed, pose a particular risk for pathogen transmission to workers and customers alike.”

THE RESEARCH: The WHO’s recommendation comes after their research revealed that some of the earliest known cases of COVID-19 are linked to a wholesale traditional food market in Wuhan in China, with many of the initial COVID patients being stall owners, market employees, or regular visitors to the market.

ANIMAL EQUALITY’S CAMPAIGN TO BAN LIVE ANIMAL MARKETS: In April of 2020, Animal Equality launched a global campaign, which garnered more than half a million signatures, calling on the United Nations to recommend a ban on markets that sell and slaughter live animals. Our investigators documented live animal markets in China, Vietnam, and India, both before and during the pandemic, revealing not only extreme animal cruelty, but also unsanitary conditions that posed a threat to human health.

The markets, many of which continued operating despite orders to close, held captive animals such as deer, raccoons, crocodiles, and dogs. Our footage reveals animals languishing in cramped, filthy cages suffering from dehydration, hunger and disease. In many cases, the animals were slaughtered while fully conscious and in full view of each other.

WE NEED TO GO FARTHER: Since COVID-19 transformed the world, the risks associated with eating wild animals has been a topic of conversation, but little has been said in the mainstream media about the great risks to human health from the consumption of more “traditionally” farmed animals in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that three out of every four infectious diseases in humans came from animals. Diseases like swine flu (H1N1), bird flu (H5N1 and others), and mad cow disease (BSE) all evolved on factory farms, and scientists are warning that it’s only a matter of time before the animal agriculture industry produces the next major pandemic.

The WHO’s recommendation is a step in the right direction, but it needs to include all species, not just wild mammals, and should include recommendations about not only food markets, but industrial farming as well.

WHAT WE’RE SAYING: “Animal Equality welcomes the guidance of the WHO, OIE, and UNEP to suspend the sale of wild animals at food markets. However, this progress is just the beginning. To ensure another pandemic virus does not emerge again, we ask that these organizations also recommend a ban on the sale of all live animals at wet markets. Until that happens, both animals and people will remain at risk,” says Sharon Núñez, President of Animal Equality.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Animals raised for food, whether at markets or on farms, can experience pain and suffering in the same capacity as humans. We can spare them from a lifetime of misery and also help reduce the risk of future pandemics by simply avoiding animal-derived foods. And with all of the great alternatives available nowadays, going plant-based is easier than ever. By choosing a compassionate lifestyle, you can spare millions of animals from harm. You can also make a difference by signing our petition to end the atrocities that happen at wet markets. With your signature, we can tell the world that enough is enough.

Take Action:

The Danger and Cruelty of Wet Markets (animalequality.org)

Regards Mark

Uncategorized

EU: Promises, Promises – A more flexible and comprehensive Animal Health Law.

WAV Comment: Reg 1/2005 on the welfare of animals in transport has been an EU non enforced joke of a law for the last 16 years or so; the EU has never been strict with enforcement of it. So what now with this ‘comprehensive animal health law’ ? – just Brussels Yukspeak we assume.

A more flexible and comprehensive Animal Health Law

The new Animal Health Law (Regulation (EU) 2016/429) on transmissible animal diseases has become applicable across the EU as of the 21 April 2021.

The new regulation means that a huge number of legal acts are streamlined into a single law, with simpler and clearer rules which enable authorities to focus on key priorities: preventing and eradicating diseases. The regulation, which was adopted by the European Parliament and Council in March 2016, clarifies responsibilities for farmers, vets and others dealing with animals, and allows for greater use of new technologies for animal health activities – surveillance of pathogens, electronic identification and registration of animals. It embraces a One Health approach allowing for better early detection & control of animal diseases, including those that can be transmissible to humans.

The law will help to reduce the occurrence and effects of animal epidemics, as well as offering more flexibility to adjust rules to local circumstances and to emerging issues such as climate and social change. It also sets out a better legal basis for monitoring animal pathogens resistant to antimicrobial agents.

Overall, the single, comprehensive and new Animal Health Law supports the EU livestock and aquaculture sectors in their quest towards better competitiveness and a safe and smooth EU market of animals and of their products, leading to growth and jobs in these important sectors. The Animal Health Law was part of a package of measures proposed by the Commission in May 2013 to strengthen the enforcement of health and safety standards for the whole agri-food chain.

As such, it is closely linked to Regulation (EU) 2017/625 (“Official Controls Regulation”). The Animal Health Law is also a key output of the Animal Health Strategy 2007-2013, “Prevention is better than cure”. For more information, please see our website

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News

Italy: What’s the real cost of meat? New Italian report sheds light on the 36.6 billion euro bill, in terms of damage to the environment and to the health of consumers.

What’s the real cost of meat? New Italian report sheds light on the 36.6 billion euro bill, in terms of damage to the environment and to the health of consumers

19 April 2021

LAV

Press Release

New report on the hidden costs of meat consumption in Italy reveals the environmental and health impacts which fell on society. If we were to include the hidden costs, one kilogram of beef would cost on average 19 euro more.

The environmental and health costs of meat production and consumption are not included in the price paid when buying it. Citizens pay the price of these hidden costs which have now for the first time been scientifically quantified. 

LAV, commissioned the first independent scientific study on the environmental and health costs of meat consumption in Italy, focusing on the most consumed meat in the country: poultry, beef, and pig. The emissions generated at all stages, rearing, slaughtering, processing, packaging, distribution, consumption and waste treatment, have been converted into economic costs for society through a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach.

The environmental costs are obtained assigning a monetary value to the impact assessed via the LCA on 11 environmental categories (1). In one year, the emissions associated with the beef life cycle alone amount to over 18 million CO2 equivalents, with a hidden annual cost of over 1 billion euro. This is equivalent to the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by the largest and most polluting coal-fired power stations in Europe. 

In addition to emissions of greenhouse gases, there are also the ones from particulates and acidifying gases in stables, and emissions of nitrates and pesticides into the soil. Together they generate the indirect cost of damaging ecosystems, for example agricultural losses due to acid soils and lack of pollinators due to pesticides.

The healthcare costs are estimated in DALY (Disability-Adjusted Life Year) and are based on the average daily consumption in Italy. Approximately 350,000 years of life are calculated to be lost each year in Italy due to meat consumption. The risks cover contracting colorectal cancer, type 2 diabetes, and stroke, and this is likely a conservative estimate, since the damage caused by other diseases associated with meat consumption, such as antibiotic resistance or cardiovascular diseases, were excluded due to the lack of a robust scientific literature. 

In Italy, on a yearly basis, the hidden environmental and health costs amount to 36.6 billion euro with the average cost almost equally divided between environmental (48%) and health costs (52%).

The report shows the unsustainability of meat consumption in Italy and the same situation could easily be mirrored in other Member States. But alternatives exist: 1kg of chicken or pork generates 8 times more costs for society than the same amount of legumes; 1kg of beef generates costs multiplied by 23 times. 

Eurogroup for Animals and LAV, based on the evidence found by the study, believe that it is time to bring forward the hidden costs of meat and implement policies to support the uptake of proteins of plant origin as an alternative to animal proteins. In order to move in this direction, it is essential that the numerous subsidies supporting the livestock industry, in different phases of the production cycle, are soon eliminated.

The results of this study are worrying and we also need to consider the suffering to animals the meat industry creates. In line with the Farm to Fork strategy, the EU has the ultimate opportunity to move away from harmful and pollutive intensive livestock farming systems and transition to a food policy that truly embraces humane and sustainable proteins production. 

Reineke Hameleers, CEO, Eurogroup for Animals

At a historic time when, after the COVID-19 pandemic, attention to the devastating potential of animal food production has increased, and when numerous international bodies warn that an urgent reduction in meat consumption is necessary, the results of this study must represent an inescapable fact for political actors, also with a view to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Climate Agreements. Thinking that we can achieve an ecological transition without immediately initiating a decisive food transition is illusory, or worse, it is false.

Roberto Bennati, General Manager, LAV.

ENDS

Read The hidden cost of meat consumption in Italy: environmental and health impacts (EN)

Read Il costo nascosto del consumo di carne in Italia: impatti ambientali e sanitari (IT)

Notes
1) The environmental impact categories considered are: climate change; ozone layer reduction; land acidification; eutrophication (divided into freshwater and marine); human toxicity; photochemical smog formation; particulate formation; eco-toxicity (divided between terrestrial, freshwater, and marine); ionizing radiation; land occupation; and water consumption. 

Regards Mark