Super pig farms as well as super dairys now??

Kimitatsu

Dont know if this is the right place to post this - please move it BG's if not

With the rise in intensive farming to feed the ever growing demand for cheap meat, we are now faced with the rise of the Super Dairy about to land on our shores where it was proposed that 8000 (yes that is thousand) cows would be housed entirely indoors to be milked and now we have super pig farms where 2,000 sows and up to 20,000 piglets will never see the light of day.

The soil association has a new campaign to try to stop these being brought to this country details here:

http://www.soilassociation.org/Takeaction/Notinmybanger/tabid/1270/Default.aspx

The shocking part to me is that they feel that they could "efficiently farm more than this", but any more animals and they would be classed as a waste site rather than a farm :eek:

If people could just take a moment to sign the petition found on the site then perhaps we could stop a little bit of madness.

Arg

Why?
10 characters.

Ken68

From what I saw on a BBC programme, the sheds were high and open sided, not closed in and no daylight.
The cows would certainly be out of the wind rain etc and all they can eat. Their own 24/7 Vet.
Music probably and if they are communal animals perhaps they like it that way.
Could be worse, they could be a fish.

Kimitatsu

Ken I too watched the BBC programme and have seen the footage from the super dairies in the states where cows are struggling to get out of the bars to the grass beyond.

I have lived in the country all of my life, my ex husbands family were dairy farmers and I watched the herd grow, move grazing through the seasons and when they had to be housed over the winter run out into the pasture kicking their heels then remembering the calves were still in and bellowing to get back in :rotfl:

Cows are herd animals and naturally move across differing pastures throughout the seasons, taking in differing vitamins and minerals, converting them to fatty acids as they go. Anyone seen the recent report that Organic Milk really is better for you because it contains higher levels of vitamins and minerals, and omega fatty acids? Thats because the cows are allowed to graze freely across pasture, not fed synthetic feeds or masses of cereals. There was a report from a famous french chef last week which stated that the British have the best meat in the world because we allow them to graze not feed intensively on cereals.

Intensive pig units often have fires caused by electrical failures, there was one not far from me last year in which 2000 pigs died in February and later in the year another 750 died taking up the time of over 10 fire crews from the surrounding cities. I have never seen a fire on a pig farm where the pigs are kept in houses in a field! The reason these pigs are kept like this is to satisfy our demand for cheap bacon, not because we are concerned for the welfare of the pigs nor the quality of the meat. So yes they could be fish or they could have died in a needless fire never having has the option to root through the earth or felt the sun on thier backs.

Neither is acceptable to my mind and as a nation we have lost touch with where our food comes from and how these animals are kept in order to eat meat 7 days a week. We could all do something about it though by taking a couple of minutes to register an objection and by buying meat from sources where you know how the animals are kept.

Sorry not meant to be a rant or aimed at anyone in particular!

Ken68

Yes Kim I do agree , but your original post did exaggerate for example "piglets never to see daylight" and "entirely indoors" etc.
The real answer is not to buy the product.
Have your read Diet for a Small Planet?