Category: Farm Animals

Farm Animals

German factory farming: a “life” in the own shit

ARIWA – Animal Rights Watch e.V.-Report

Disturbing images from the end of November 2020 show how hundreds of pigs, with their extremely sensitive noses, sleep, eat, drink and die in a pathetically smelly mixture of their own feces and urine.

They stand and lie inches deep in their own droppings

The explosive: The conditions have been known to the veterinary office since November and still exist because the technical problems that caused them have not yet been resolved (!!!)
The operation continues as normal without the animals concerned having at least been housed elsewhere.
It is unbelievable and yet everyday life in German “animal production”.

Image: ARIWA

The veterinary office knows about the conditions and has been on-site several times. Even so, it doesn’t even order the animals to be housed elsewhere.

As almost always in pig fattening, the animals suffer from necrosis due to bitten tails, open wounds, umbilical hernias, and eye infections.
The omnipresent excrement makes the infections worse.

Image: ARIWA

In one corridor of the plant, there is even no cover for the slurry basin: Apparently, nobody cares that pigs can fall into it and drown in agony.

Image: ARIWA

The head injuries of many animals in the carcass house also suggest that sick pigs are regularly killed here with a bolt shot in the head – which ARIWA has already documented many times in other companies.

Image: ARIWA

These pictures show once more: Even the absurdly low statutory minimum standards are not enforced in the animal industry. The only solution to end this millionfold suffering is a consistent move away from animal products.

Ein „Leben“ im eigenen Kot

And I mean… “The only solution to end this millionfold suffering is a consistent move away from animal products”…

This is a solution that will take hundreds of years to become a reality. The world will never go totally vegan and is not willing to end this millionfold suffering in the immediate future.

But until then, the guilty must be punished.

We also don’t forgive a murderer because we wait for all people to understand that murder is not good.

And the slogan … but that’s the animal industry, it happens everywhere … it doesn’t help the animals and neither does us. Wherever it happens, it is a crime and must be punished.

And if the veterinary office doesn’t do it, then we gather in front of the fattening facility and demand that it be closed.

Of course, factory farming is excruciating in every form of keeping.

But until this society has understood it and ceases to support this system, criminals in animal production and their state lobbyists must be shown and punished according to the law.

My best regards to all, Venus

Farm Animals, General News

Animal cruelty in german organic slaughterhouses

Beaten, kicked, failed: Animal cruelty in the organic slaughterhouse
Is that how you imagined everyday life in organic slaughterhouse?
Many people turn to organic meat because they think organic stands for animal welfare.

The latest undercover research by the German Animal Welfare Office (Deutsches Tierschutzbüro) uncovered the scandalous conditions at the” FÄRBER” company organic slaughterhouse at the gates of the capital Berlin!


The leaked recordings show cruel animal cruelty through mistreatment and mistreatment of defenseless animals and prove one thing above all:

Whether organic slaughterhouse, trusted butcher, or slaughterhouse giant – all animals fight for their lives, none die voluntarily and their killing is always painful. After the video material was leaked to the organization, they immediately informed the responsible veterinary office. The veterinary office and the public prosecutor’s office then received all of the evidence.

The company has now been closed by the responsible veterinary office.
It’s a success! the scandal organic slaughterhouse stops slaughtering!

Bio-Company and Bio Manufaktur Havelland have announced that they have discontinued their cooperation with the horror slaughterhouse.
A great success against cruelty to animals?
But that is not enough: those responsible must be held accountable and given fair punishment.

Please share this video so that everyone can see that only avoiding animal products is an effective protection against animal cruelty.

Geschlagen, getreten & fehlbetäubt – Tierqual im “Bio-Schlachthof”

And I mean: “Enjoy our meat” is the slogan of the FÄRBER company
“For quality, we get down to work every day”!!

To the video:
Minute 1: 8- stunning area. One can clearly see how brutally animals are treated.

Some of them are even hit with hooks. The electric pliers are used in an uncontrolled manner, which has the consequence that the animals are not completely anesthetized.

Minute 2:15 – The animals can witness the death of the other animals.
In the bleeding area (minute 2:40) the animals show violent movements because they are neither dead nor stunned and suffer hellish agony.
The failure rate is estimated to be 40% at this slaughterhouse, and according to the video recording.
That’s the worst thing you can do to an animal.

The video material clearly shows that neither a follow-up nor a veterinary examination is taking place.
Sick and injured animals are also slaughtered
A clear violation of animal welfare law.

The slaughterhouse FÄRBER is affiliated with the animal welfare initiative and enjoyed a high value as an organic slaughterhouse until the undercover investigation.
The main customer is the Bio Company, and Bio Manufactur Havelland has sent pigs to the FÄRBER slaughterhouse.
The slaughterhouse is now closed.
The video was shown on many TV channels.

But not much will change in the consciousness of meat-eaters.
Animal cruelty is suppressed with the excuse of isolated cases.
And with the reassurance that as soon as the slaughterhouse is no longer in operation, the other slaughterhouses will learn from it and slaughter “humanely”.


The most effective way to distort reality is to deny it.

My best regards to all, Venus

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News

Veganuary 2021: Sign-ups are Breaking All Records – Over 500,000 People Have Already Pledged to go Vegan In Just First Week.

Veganuary 2021 sign-ups are breaking all records as less than a week into January over 500,000 people have already pledged to go vegan.

Veganuary 2021 hits record-breaking 500,000 sign-ups

Record 500,000 people pledge to eat only vegan food in January

Veganuary taken up by rising number of people trying plant-based alternatives to meat.

A record 500,000 people have signed up to the Veganuary challenge to eat only plant-based foods for a month. The milestone is double the number who pledged to go vegan for January in 2019.

A quarter of those taking up the challenge – 125,000 – are in the UK,

Read all about it, and lots more at:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/05/veganuary-record-number-people-pledge-eat-vegan-food-january

Farm Animals, General News

Tönnies will slaughter in China in the future

The Tönnies group of companies is building a slaughterhouse in China for up to six million pigs a year.
The company is convinced of growth in Asia.

Together with the Dekon Group, a subsidiary of the West Hope Group, the Tönnies slaughterhouse will set up a slaughtering and cutting center for initially two million pigs in the Sichuan region.

In a second step, this can be expanded to up to six million pig slaughterings per year. The corresponding contract was signed by the partners this week.

The joint venture started in September last year with a joint letter of intent between the two companies. Construction and technical implementation should begin in a few months.
The Tönnies group of companies is aiming for its first production site outside of Europe.

Tönnies: Rheda-Wiedenbrück, Germany

“This joint venture is a milestone for our international development,” said Clemens Tönnies, the managing partner of Tönnies Holding.

Total investment of 500 million euros

In the first step, Tönnies is investing a double-digit million amount in the joint venture. The money goes mainly into construction and technical development.

The joint venture has an even majority of 50 percent each. The total investment volume amounts to around 500 million euros, a large part of which goes into agricultural production.
The Dekon Group currently fattening around two million pigs annually in China.

“The demand for pork in China and many other Asian countries is great and will continue to grow in the coming decades,” says Clemens Tönnies.

China-swine fever

The Chinese food market is currently in a state of upheaval. African swine fever (ASF) has culled stocks in parts of the country.
Small farms and backyards are now being replaced by farms that meet Western European standards in terms of biosecurity.

https://www.agrarheute.com/management/agribusiness/toennies-baut-schlachthof-china-559430

And I mean…Tönnies operates large slaughterhouses abroad, for example in Poland and Denmark, and is Germany’s largest butcher.
He also has plans to build a very modern slaughterhouse in the Spanish province of Aragon.
At least that’s what the Spanish newspaper “Helaldo” reports.

The meat cutting process should be fully automated and supported by robots. Up to 625 pigs could be slaughtered per hour. That would be 70,000 animals a week. Tönnies wants to invest 75 million euros there and create up to 1,000 jobs.

The slaughterhouse in Aragon has been planned for some time. According to the newspaper, the city council of Calamocha has been in talks with Tönnies for five years (!!!)

At the request of the “Handelsblatt”, the company said the project was still at a very early stage. There is a “Letter of Intent”, the contract planning is still ongoing.

According to “Heraldo”, the meat from calamocha is to be marketed primarily in Spain and the EU.
Spain has recently become the world’s largest exporter of pork.

The planned meat factory in Spain is to be built by 2024 at the latest

Tönnies’ grand plans in China are not just expansion. Because of the outbreak of African swine fever in German wild boars, China, an important customer of Tönnies, has stopped importing pork from all over Germany for the time being. That is why the company wants to build large slaughterhouses in a joint venture with the Dekon Group there.

Everyone who eats meat, regardless of its type and origin, should be ashamed to collaborate in such businesses.

This applies to all meat eaters… in China, Spain, Germany, Poland, Australia …

For their own enjoyment or profit, they let others do the killing for them and with their consumption they help animal killers to do the bloody business with animals in the billions.

Factory farming is nothing more than legalized cruelty to animals.

Anyone who buys animal products signs the contracts with, for this cruelty to animals – everyone and in every country !!

My best regards to all, Venus

Farm Animals, General News, Live Transport

World Health Organisation Disease Specialist Warns Live Animal Export Must Stop.

World Health Organisation disease specialist warns live animal export must stop

World Health Organisation disease specialist warns live animal export must stop | Animals Australia

World Health Organisation epidemiologist Professor Mary-Louise McLaws has warned of the danger of live animal exports, saying the trade poses the risk of a “ghastly” disease outbreak.

The disease expert, who is a Professor of Epidemiology at the University of New South Wales and Health Emergencies IPC Preparedness, Readiness and Response to COVID-19 Advisor to the World Helath Organisation, was interviewed on Channel 10’s The Project and had some strong words to say about the continuation of live animal exports.

While people and animals across the world continue to suffer the impacts of the devastating COVID-19 pandemic, scientists and academics are increasingly drawing attention to humanity’s broken relationship with nature and animals as a major cause for alarm and risk of future pandemics. 

A recent report from the United Nations warns that a stream of diseases can be expected to jump from animals to humans in coming years, while the global demand for meat — and the resultant deforestation and intensification of animal farming — continues.

The live animal export industry forces animals into close confinement in unnatural surroundings which can lead to extreme stress, injury, sickness and death. Live export ships are essentially factory farms on water — taking animals like cattle and sheep from open pastures and confining them to pens for weeks at a time, exposing them to cruel conditions including extreme heat and rough seas. 

Even during this time when so many people’s movement is restricted to try to stop the virus from spreading, this industry has been allowed to continue to operate — to the detriment of both humans and animals.

As if there weren’t enough reasons to end the cruel trade… not only does live export condemn millions of animals to terrible suffering, but, according to this disease expert, it’s putting human lives at risk too.

Farm Animals, General News

South Korea: Dog Farming – Call for Action: Kia Must Speak Out Against the Brutality of South Korea!

Call for Action: Kia must speak out against the brutality of South Korea! 

Click on the following for full news and actions:

https://r.newsletter.koreandogs.org/aig4pwodtht7e.html?utm_source=sendinblue&utm_campaign=_Call_for_Action_Kia_must_speak_out_against_the_brutality_of_South_Korea!_&utm_medium=email

South Korea’s Conglomerates (called “Jaebol”) have an enormous power and influence over their government and people because they make up the majority of their economy and employ millions of people combined. When the Kia Management speaks, the President of Korea will listen. How disappointing and shameful it is, therefore, that despite its wealth and influence, Kia shows no interest in helping to fight the horrific and diabolic practice of dog and cat meat cruelty in their own country. These evil meat trades are a blight on their people and their homeland – for numerous reasons. So, why doesn’t Kia feel any social responsibility to take action? Why are they content to do nothing to help end this abhorrence?

And here is another very good reason to NOT buy a Kia: 👉 🔥🔥🔥 Kia, Hyundai recall cars due to possibility of catching on fire.🔥🔥🔥

It’s time for Kia to speak up and do their part to bring an end to this illegal and unethical practice of brutalizing and eating man’s best friends. Please write to the management of Kia today!

Call for action – Kia:

Kia must speak out against the brutality of South Korea! – Stop the Dog and Cat Consumption in S. Korea! (koreandogs.org)

Call for action – Samsung

Samsung must speak out against the brutality of South Korea! – Stop the Dog and Cat Consumption in S. Korea! (koreandogs.org)

Call for action – Hyundai

Hyundai must speak out against the brutality of South Korea! – Stop the Dog and Cat Consumption in S. Korea! (koreandogs.org)

Farm Animals, Fur and Fur Farming, General News

Danish Mink (Fur) Farmers To Now Set Up Business In Sweden ?

Info from contact Hans in Sweden:

Shocking HSI investigation reveals terror, suffering of foxes and mink on Finland's fur farms · A Humane World
Pic – HSI

BREAKING NEWS regarding the mink farming issue in Denmark. Now, it appears that it will be in Sweden instead. Because mink farming is banned in Denmark for 2021, Danish mink farmers now want to start up their buisness again. Not in Denmark, but in neighbouring country Sweden instead where it’s still legal despite pandemic!

Sweden could very well become the new Denmark, with tens of millions of mink farmed and killed every year. As it is now, there are about 40 fur farms in Sweden. The introduction of Danish fur farmers in Sweden is “warmly welcomed” by the Swedish mink industry for “job opportunities” in Southern Sweden. Out of the 8 parties in the Parliament of Sweden, 6 supports fur farming and would welcome this addition to the Swedish fur industry.

https://www.expressen.se/kvallsposten/danska-minkodlare-vill-starta-farmar-i-sverige/?fbclid=IwAR12sF1b1OfLSorEaNLbud6lrrFLRjmvaNP3EbLumhzzwUqdXz8OAlD5uSw

Google translated article:

“The mink industry is wiped out and banned in Denmark after the corona mutation that led to a mass death of 15 million minks.

Several of the country’s mink breeders are now looking to Sweden to start again.

– We are obviously very positive about it, says Jörgen Martinsson, CEO of Swedish mink.

The news about the Danish minks has received international attention during the autumn.

It was when a mutated variant of the corona virus was discovered on several mink farms in the country that a professor went out and warned that Denmark could become “a new Wuhan”. The government acted forcefully and demanded that all minks in the country – about 15 million – be killed.

In November, the next blow came to the mink industry. The Danish government then banned all mink industry from being conducted throughout 2021.

– Danish mink industry as we know it is gone. It is a grief without its equal and a shocking decision for the mink industry in Denmark but also in the rest of Europe, says Jörgen Martinsson, CEO of the industry organization Swedish mink.

Most farms in southern Sweden
Recently, about ten Danish mink breeders have contacted Swedish mink to review the possibility of establishing their operations in Sweden instead, says Jörgen Martinsson.

– We are of course very positive that Danish breeders are interested. Partly because we have had a lot of collaborations and exchanges with Danish breeders for a long time, partly because they have long experience and great competence in this.

The discussions have been both about taking over existing farms in Sweden but also starting their own farms on Swedish soil.

– It is mostly in southern Sweden, this is where the best opportunities are, says Martinsson.

Last fall 15 September
The mutation that was discovered on mink farms seems to be extinct – the last confirmed case was on 15 September.

Since the first outbreak, about 15 million minks have been killed. Anyone who has not yet killed their mink must do so by 15 January, but the mink breeders are still waiting for the promised financial compensation from the government.

– It is still chaos in different ways. A political chaos which, of course, entailed great uncertainty. How is the Danish mink industry feeling today? It is not possible to answer because it does not really exist anymore, says Jörgen Martinsson.”

Farm Animals, General News, Uncategorized

‘Veganuary’ Expects More Than Half a Million Participants Worldwide in 2021.

Veganuary Expects More Than Half a Million Participants Worldwide in 2021

Every year, nonprofit organization Veganuary encourages people to choose plant-based food for January and beyond. For 2021, the group aims to attract more than half a million participants around the world!

The COVID-19 pandemic has only highlighted the urgency of plant-based eating, as raising animals for food can promote the creation and spread of dangerous diseases. Consumers are growing more aware of this connection, with sales of plant-based meat jumping 35 percent from April to May 2020. Tofu is also flying off the shelves. According to Nielsen, tofu sales in the first half of 2020 were a whopping 40 percent higher than last year. And Google searches for tofu recipes have nearly doubled since March. Actor and Veganuary supporter Alec Baldwin said:

During the pandemic, we have cooked all our meals at home and have moved to a completely plant-based diet in this house. When you prepare your own food, it’s interesting how your tastes change. And any animal products become less appetizing when you prepare them, from start to finish, yourself.

Last year, Veganuary expected 350,000 participants and ended up with more than 400,000 from 192 countries! Among participants were rock legends Brian May and Meat Loaf. Veganuary also launched the first-ever vegan advertisement for mainstream U.K. television.

Since Veganuary was founded in 2014, over a million people have participated. Of those surveyed, 47 percent said they were committed to staying vegan, while 77 percent of those not committed said they were “very likely to try veganism again.”

People who take the Veganuary pledge get support through emails, social media content, and membership in a Facebook group. Veganuary also encourages brands, manufacturers, and retailers to expand their plant-based options. In fact, several huge companies, including Yelp, Mendocino Farms, Tofurky, Follow Your Heart, and Violife, have agreed to offer Veganuary promotions, giveaways, special menu items, and more.

Programs like Veganuary are a powerful way to introduce people to plant-based eating. Get started on your New Year’s resolution by taking the pledge, and order a FREE Vegetarian Starter Guide for recipes and tips!

Vegan Faces
Farm Animals

Betta fish-the gruesome delivery from Thailand

Betta fish are vibrant and colorful, but they’re also extremely complex animals.

At Petco stores around the country, they’re confined to tiny plastic cups with scarcely a couple of inches of water inside that are stacked on top of one another.

Thailand: The eyewitness who took the photo saw a bucket of dead and live fighting fish. These animals were considered unprofitable because their caudal fin was damaged. One employee said they would be thrown into a canal or pond.

Scores of customers have complained of finding dead, sick, and injured bettas floating in filthy water on the chain’s store shelves.

PETA’s investigations of the pet industry have uncovered appalling neglect of betta fish even before they reach stores.

They’re often starved for several days during transport and are confined individually to tiny bags that are stuffed into boxes stacked up high in massive wholesale warehouses. Many fish die before and during transport to retailers, which can take days, as they’re shipped all over the country. Industry insiders have confirmed that this system is a common practice for some retailers.

Each captive betta fish requires a regularly cleaned aquarium with gallons of water heated to between 76 and 82 degrees Fahrenheit, a good filtration system, and enrichments such as caves, rocks, and live plants in order to thrive.

Selling them in tiny bowls or cups perpetuates the harmful myth that they’re nothing more than pretty “starter pets” who should be kept solitary. In fact, female bettas can live together, and while male bettas will fight with other males, they can be placed in a “community” aquarium containing other species of fish.

In some branches, fighting fish are kept in tiny plastic cups that only contain a few centimeters of water.

While some bettas are captured in the wild, the vast majority of those sold in the U.S. come from breeding farms in Thailand and other countries in Southeast Asia, where it’s common practice to keep them in small bottles.

When it’s time to pack them for transport, fish are haphazardly dumped into baskets covered with nets and scooped up into tiny plastic cups. Then, they’re packed up to be sent to the United States.

While workers sorted the fighting fish for transport, the animals were out of the water, writhing and gasping for air.

Segrest Farms, a Petco fish supplier, admitted that it sources bettas from Thailand.

In addition to being forced to endure cramped conditions, these fish are denied everything that’s natural and important to them, which can cause them to become depressed. According to Victoria Braithwaite, a professor at Penn State University who studies fish intelligence, depression is likely prompted by a lack of stimulation.

In study after study, fish are defying stereotypes: Some use tools, and others can recognize individual human faces.

Male bettas have devoted fathers who build bubble nests for their young with their mouths and fiercely protect their babies from predators. In his book What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins, ethologist Jonathan Balcombe notes that bettas stop killing each other and instead exhibit cooperative group behavior when they’re released from the “artificiality of captivity.”

Most fish are shipped in small plastic bags that have just enough water to cover the animals’ bodies. Countless fish die before they even arrive at the pet shop.

Yet these sensitive fish continue to suffer greatly in the pet trade, where they’re subjected to inadequate care from the time they’re born on breeding farms to when they’re transported to pet stores to when they’re sold.

Take Action!

Despite the cruelty inherent in the “pet” betta fish industry, Petco continues to sell these animals in tiny containers. No fish should be forced to live and die in a tiny bowl. Urge Petco to end the sale of betta fish immediately!

Betta Fish Are Suffering by the Millions | Take Action Today

 

Additional Information: Thailand is one of the world’s most important export countries for fighting fish.
In 2019, an eyewitness from PETA took a look around Thai fighting fish farms that supply the global pet trade – including the German one. What he found was shocking conditions and cruelty to animals.

Many of the animals had died in the breeding tanks and were simply not removed.
At a Petco supplier, the eyewitness came across a bucket full of dead and live fighting fish.
One employee said these animals were not profitable because their caudal fin was damaged. She admitted that they would just dump them in a nearby pond or canal.

The eyewitness looked at a total of 10 establishments

In this company, tens of thousands of fish were kept in tiny, often dirty bottles. Due to the small amount of water, the ammonia produced by the fish’s excretions quickly accumulates and pollutes the water. The bottles were so close together that the employees could walk over them.

For worldwide shipping, fighting fish are packed without any food and sent on a journey of several days by air freight. A staff member told the eyewitness that sedatives would be put into the water to prevent the fish from trying to eat their own caudal fin.

According to an employee, a company that supplies Petco sends 100,000 fighting fish to the USA every week.

Up to 1,000 of them die before they reach the dealer.

The company EFS – Zoo buys Betta fish from Thailand from the company Q.P.S. International Aquatics Co. Ltd., which can be seen in this video at minutes 1’41 – 1‘59.

 

Fish are not decorations, and they should never be forced to live and die in a tiny bowl

There is nothing more perverse than imprisoning animals in a water prison for life and claiming that someone does this out of love for animals!

Every single living being has a specific task, an individual meaning in the entire context of life.
Only the recognition of the individuality of each being can lead to a coherent ethic for our behavior with animals.
Since thinking is part of our life’s tasks, we are morally obliged not to tear other beings out of their living space and use them at will.

This moral principle cannot be discussed. It is a fact!

My best regards to all, Venus