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700,000 chicks seized in factory farms
10 February 2012 Have your say
Last weekend, authorities in Victoria legally seized 700,000 factory farmed chickens within four farms owned by a major poultry producer. The birds — some less than a week old — were at risk of starvation due to the company's financial trouble and inability to continue to feed them.
Whilst charges against this producer are likely, others will continue to operate despite thousands of 'meat' chickens dying in their sheds under 'standard' operating conditions every week.
According to the Australian Chicken Meat Federation's own statistics, about 4% of chickens die — or in their terms, 'are lost' — before they are sent to slaughter. With more than half a billion chickens raised for their meat in Australia just last year, this amounts to an estimated 22 million birds every year, or 60,000 per day — suffering and dying in their sheds. Despite this appalling situation, industry operators remain free from prosecution, protected by a 'code of practice'.
'Meat' chickens have become some of the worst victims of industrialised farming's never ending desire for expediency and profit. Through selective breeding, chickens now grow at four times their natural growth rate. As a result, their immature bodies are often unable to cope, and many birds suffer from leg problems and are unable to properly move or stand. This leaves some birds incapable of reaching food or water and they are left to die from thirst or starvation.
In an attempt to disguise the cruel nature of their business, some major chicken producers are using misleading claims to convince consumers that the animals are well cared for.
Last year, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) took the producers of chicken brands Steggles and La Ionica, and the Australian Chicken Meat Federation to court for using the slogan 'free to roam'. Factory farmed chickens in reality each have less space in their sheds than the size of an A4 piece of paper, and the high population densities make it impossible for them to roam around freely.
Early January, La Ionica's owner Turi Foods settled the case and was ordered to pay a $100,000 fine, but the remaining defendants are less keen to give up their misleading label and will face the ACCC in court in March. In the mean time, hope for millions of birds rests with informed consumers refusing to buy into cruelty. Click here to learn how to become a compassionate shopper, and how you can make a difference to the lives of animals every time you shop.
Post a commentYour Say: 201 comments
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hen lover:
everyone should donate $4 to get this project going
Wednesday, 29 February 2012 at 7:39am
Save 500 hens from a horrible caged life. If everyone donated just $4 , less than the cost of a dozen eggs we will be giving such a good life to 500 hens. take a look at it, www.indiegogo.com/happyhens
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+ 8
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ann farrugia:
plz check the abbatoir in euchuka nsw
Monday, 27 February 2012 at 10:44am
i was jet skiing with my dad on the euchuka murry river wen i heard terrible pig noises,i askd my dad,wat the hell is that, he told me ther is an abbatoir up the hill.i begged him to come with me to c y the pigs wer making soooo much noise,i was going to take a footage of the abbatoir,as we walkd up the hill and nearly approaching the slaughter house a man yelld out "ay wat ru doin" i told him i was looking for a toilet, he told me this is private property get off. i askd him if the animals r being stunnd before killing them, he told me to "f--k off" my dad is not a strong man,so we left,i told him i was going to report this abbatoir, its probably not even legal..can sumone plz hav a look.the pigs were realy crying,i think its calld riverside meats.
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Mel:
cont..
Sunday, 26 February 2012 at 11:12pm
it was the company staff including farm managers that did the abuse not the catchers, they were down the other end of the shed loading chooks into cages and I never saw what happened down there. I was an egg collector, hen trainer (training them to jump up into the nests to lay their eggs) egg grader, bird grader (see who was healthy enough to stay on...I hated that intensely) and the whole staff would be called in at night for an extra shift for bird moves and later on I was also on the vaccination team. I've seen a lot of videos of what goes on in piggeries or should I say I've seen seconds of many and can't continue to watch, it sickens me and breaks my heart.
Show 3 replies
Jude Bowman:
Two sides..
Sunday, 26 February 2012 at 5:23pm
Interesting to hear both sides Mel and Hazel. I am not sure what to think anymore, but i think it best i don't partake in this horror by not eating therefore not supporting the poultry industry. I only eat free range eggs, but a local farmer who has hens and lovely eggs and i get to see the chooks clucking about the place. Hmmmmmmmmm.... this is a very evocative topic. For the most part, what i have seen, heard and articles read, it doesn't bode well for either the meat, dairy or poultry industry. I really do wish things were different. I go to bed every night worrying, not being able to sleep.. not being able to stop the horrors, it's enough to do permanent mental damage to caring compassionate humans :((
Paula T:
CCTV IN ALL AUS ABATTOIRS
Saturday, 25 February 2012 at 9:09pm
HI EVERYONE.... IF ANYONE IS HAVING TROUBLE FINDING THIS PETITION ON change.org JUST TYPE IN "MONIQUE NGUYEN" SHE IS THE GREAT LADY THAT STARTED THIS PETITION & THERE IS ONLY 2000 SINATURES & WE NEED 10,000 SO PLEASE SEND IT TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE & TO ALL POLLIES, MP's ETC.. THIS HORRENDOUS CRUELTY HAS TO BE STOPPED ASAP. CHEERS xx
Barbara Gruner:
Animal welfare
Saturday, 25 February 2012 at 4:35pm
Thanks to Animals Australia the animals have a big voice that speaks for them. Wherever we see cruelty we must all speak up and take action
val:
Animal abuse exposed!
Friday, 24 February 2012 at 8:32pm
Well done Animals Australlia/Lyn White for all you do to help these beautiful creatures that suffer so much unneccessary pain. Being an animal lover, it hurt me so badly watching Four Corners, in fact I got hysterical and ill after watching it for a few minutes! Well done to all those who are prepared to stand up and expose these atrocities, may you go from strenght to strength!!!
Susanne Gardner:
God is irrelevant and so is veganism
Tuesday, 21 February 2012 at 2:29pm
I am an atheist, and a meat-eater. So I accept that my place in the natural order is to eat meat. Yes I tried being vegetarian and was very ill after 5 years - it does NOT suit everyone. BUT there are ways of eating meat that involve less cruelty than others, and therefore I buy free-range chicken and lamb that has been wandering around the paddocks. It's not perfect, but it's something, and the kind of something that the MAJORITY of people could do - there's no point batting on about how your extreme lifestyle is the answer if no-one else is going to do it! You need to ask yourself what matters more - your self-righteousness or getting results for animals who really don't know or care about your beliefs and egos.
Show 12 replies
Emmanuel:
Please stop this cruelty
Tuesday, 21 February 2012 at 1:52am
It is so sad and heart breaking that people would treat cute innocent animals like that in the name of profit. I believe these chickens have feelings and therefore have the right to be treated right. The world is now full of ungodly people. No wounder why natural disasters are occuring around the world now n then.
Show 1 reply
Paula T:
BIG PETITION
Wednesday, 15 February 2012 at 7:29pm
HI EVERYONE.....THERE IS A BIG PETITION ON change.org for CCTV's IN ALL AUSTRALIN ABATTOIRS & OTHER IMPORTANT ANIMAL PETITIONS TOO...
Show 8 replies
SKY:
IT'S A SHAME
Wednesday, 15 February 2012 at 12:53pm
THEIR TIME WILL COME TO THESE BASTARDS THAT HURT INNOCENT ANIMALS. GOD IS WATCHING AND NO ONE WILL GET AWAY WITH MURDER.
DON'T EAT MEAT!!!! IT'S THE BEST THING WE CAN DO AND WE WILL FEEL BETTER WITH OUR ACTIONS. THANK YOU FOR HELPING THE ANIMALS AND GOD BLESS YOU!!!!!!
Show 2 repliesDON'T EAT MEAT!!!! IT'S THE BEST THING WE CAN DO AND WE WILL FEEL BETTER WITH OUR ACTIONS. THANK YOU FOR HELPING THE ANIMALS AND GOD BLESS YOU!!!!!!
GLORIA CARTAGENA:
GOD LOVES HIS ANIMALS
Wednesday, 15 February 2012 at 12:45pm
GOD CREATED ANIMALIS TO FLOURISH IN THE ENVIRONMENT. ANIMALS ARE ALSO GOD'S DIVINE CREATION. GOD NEVER SANCTIONED CRUEL TREATMENT OF THEM. THE BIBLE SAYS THE RIGHTTEOUS ONE IS CARING FOR THE SOUL OF HIS DOMESTIC ANIMAL. BUT THE MERCIES OF THE WICKED ONES ARE CRUEL. GOD FURTHER DIRECTED THAT CATTLE AND OTHER ANIMAL WERE NOT PUT UNDER AN EXTREME BURDEN. ( EXODUS 23:5 ) (DEUTERONOMY 22:10) CLEARLY, THE BIBLE TEACHES THAT ANIMALS WERE TO BE TREATED WITH PROPRIETY, RESPECT AND COMPASSION!!!!! ANYBODY THAT MESS AROUND WITH ANIMALS WILL PAY BACK. NATURAL DISASTERS WILL COME AROUND AND THEY WILL BE SO SORRY. BECAUSE WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND. IT CAN HAPPEN ANY TIME. RESPECT AN ANIMAL BECAUSE THEY DO HAVE FEELINGS, HEART AND ARE GOD'S CREATURES TOO. ANYBODY THAT DOES THIS IS BETRAYING GOD.
Show 6 replies
Mandy H:
Thank god!
Tuesday, 14 February 2012 at 10:57pm
It's good that someone has the ethics to fight for the rights of the poor chickens that are murdered and lost so that others can eat them. I feel very sorry for them.
ann farrugia:
thank you
Monday, 13 February 2012 at 8:49pm
i am so glad that things are being done,i stil feel sooo sad knowing all the cruelty that is going on and how sometimes we just can not stop it.
, thank you animals australia for all the updates and all the good work you all do.iwill keep donating as much as i can and please everyone,,donate even if its five or ten dollars,it all adds up.help animals australia help animals.
Show 1 reply, thank you animals australia for all the updates and all the good work you all do.iwill keep donating as much as i can and please everyone,,donate even if its five or ten dollars,it all adds up.help animals australia help animals.
Karen Boothey:
LET THEM KNOW YOU DON'T APPROVE...
Monday, 13 February 2012 at 5:24pm
and don't buy their products.
I wrote to McDonald's 20 years ago to ask them to include a vegetarian burger on their menu. They wrote back to say that there wasn't sufficient demand to warrant its inclusion, so no, they wouldn't. They have since modified their menu due to public demand and awareness as well as the desire to be able to obtain fast food that is also nutritious. If it could be cruelty free then that would be even better.
Let factory farmers know you do not approve and don't buy their products. Research free range producers and support them. Demand and the almighty dollar is the only thing that will bring about a change in the way producers operate.
Do not just accept the adverts that producers pay big money for to promote their produce that often include border line claims.
Ask questions of them and demand an answer otherwise don't buy their products.
"It is clear from these studies that...450 square centimetres does not allow sufficient opportunity for hens to perform a range of behaviour patterns such as preening, turning or wing flapping". Quote taken from 'Save the Animals 101 easy things you can do' by Peter Singer and Barbara Dover in Chapter 6 titled The Most Miserable Creature in the Feathered World. Published in Australia in 1991.
This cruelty has been going on for decades and whilst other countries have legislated to ban battery cages Australia is not one of them.
I wrote to McDonald's 20 years ago to ask them to include a vegetarian burger on their menu. They wrote back to say that there wasn't sufficient demand to warrant its inclusion, so no, they wouldn't. They have since modified their menu due to public demand and awareness as well as the desire to be able to obtain fast food that is also nutritious. If it could be cruelty free then that would be even better.
Let factory farmers know you do not approve and don't buy their products. Research free range producers and support them. Demand and the almighty dollar is the only thing that will bring about a change in the way producers operate.
Do not just accept the adverts that producers pay big money for to promote their produce that often include border line claims.
Ask questions of them and demand an answer otherwise don't buy their products.
"It is clear from these studies that...450 square centimetres does not allow sufficient opportunity for hens to perform a range of behaviour patterns such as preening, turning or wing flapping". Quote taken from 'Save the Animals 101 easy things you can do' by Peter Singer and Barbara Dover in Chapter 6 titled The Most Miserable Creature in the Feathered World. Published in Australia in 1991.
This cruelty has been going on for decades and whilst other countries have legislated to ban battery cages Australia is not one of them.
Mel:
been there
Sunday, 12 February 2012 at 9:12pm
I've worked in one of these places, a barn not battery run and it broke my heart everyday, my first job of every day there was to collect the dead. As soon as the door opened some of them would be terrified and run away and promptly have a heart attack, some would attack me and then others attack them, as soon as there is blood they all attack until the bleeding one is dead. They are cannibals, many times I would be collecting skeletons just from overnight. I would often be physically sick but had to support my children as I'm a kiwi and not entitled to anything. There are things that can never be unseen and I am forever haunted :(
Show 3 replies
Mary:
Real issue
Sunday, 12 February 2012 at 12:50pm
The real issue is the cruelty, not the raising of animals for meat and eggs. There will always be meat eaters, like it or not. So holier-than-thou vegans have no place in this argument.
Animals Australia is doing the right thing in bringing pressure on governments and producers to cut out animal suffering, but the preaching by vegans on this forum will achieve nothing, not one damned thing.
Show 10 repliesAnimals Australia is doing the right thing in bringing pressure on governments and producers to cut out animal suffering, but the preaching by vegans on this forum will achieve nothing, not one damned thing.
Wrecksy:
where did they go?
Sunday, 12 February 2012 at 12:05pm
As someone who has rescued many animals along my life's path, I wonder just how you would remove and re home 700 000 chooks!!! Someone has a big cardboard box, and a big back yard!! :-)
Show 1 reply
Carole Li:
Go Vegan
Saturday, 11 February 2012 at 3:51pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5pDU1yMWMw
I'm Vegan: Gary Francione
Show 3 repliesI'm Vegan: Gary Francione
Lesley Bonner:
It Is Time
Saturday, 11 February 2012 at 3:48pm
So where does the money paid for these paltry fines go ? How about fining an amount that the perpetrators of cruelty would respect, and then pay-forward at least 50% to AA where the money can be put to good use to continue working for the hapless animals. If the perpetrators default on paying the fine, it should result in automatic shut-down of their operation. Either way, it should make them pay a little more attention to their despicable practices, and AA's work would be done anyway. It is time to get real.
Show 4 replies
See also:Tell Coles & Woolies to can the cage!Battery cages banned in EuropeColes cage egg phase out decision welcomeOpinion: New standards could make consumers choose between the chicken and the eggRSPCA steps into free-range egg rowFact Sheet: Broiler Chickens
It's still legal to confine hens in battery cages where each bird has less space than 1 A4 sized sheet of paper in which she cannot even stretch her wings. Find out more...
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