On some things we’ve seen progress, on others progress remains slow. An example of the latter in Britain is the ongoing use of the so-called ‘farrowing crate’ to confine mother pigs in industrial systems. On the other hand, we are on the cusp of a major breakthrough for egg laying hens with a ban on barren cages due next year.
Twenty years ago, I reported on a farming press headline declaring that intensive pig farming was an “industry still in the dark ages”. The Farmers Guardian article was referring to the use of farrowing crates that are used to confine mothering sows from when they give birth (farrow) to the time their piglets are weaned weeks later. I quoted two researchers from the University of Guelph as saying, “Crates are so narrow that with almost every move the sow unavoidably rubs herself against the bars and partitions, frequently causing abrasions and, in some cases, swellings”. I ended the article saying, “Freedom at farrowing is every sow’s right. The pig industry must drag itself out of the dark ages. Dispensing with the farrowing crate would be a good start.” Sadly, twenty years later on, the farrowing crate is still the predominant system for sows kept indoors. It’s time for change. We are upping our campaign in the UK and Europe to see an end to this appalling system.
One major area where it does look like we are seeing progress is with the long-awaited ban on the barren battery cage for laying hens in Europe. Our ‘Defend the big move’ campaign aims to make sure that Europe doesn’t back-slide on its promise to consign battery cages to the scrapheap of history from January next year.
Big leap for the ‘big move’
It’s a campaign that has motivated many people; one of them is Jeremy Hayward, the Vice-chair of Compassion’s Board. Jeremy is taking a big leap – skydiving to raise money for our ‘big move’ campaign against barren cages. And I’ll be interviewing him soon after his daring feat to find out just how he felt hurtling through the air, arms spread, in aid of hens unable to stretch their wings.
If you would like to learn more or sponsor Jeremy’s big leap, please click here .
And talking of hens, I’m often asked to write more about my four adopted hens. So I’ve done just that. Coming shortly will be a series of blog articles entitled, ‘Living with hens’, giving insights into the way they live; their likes, dislikes and antics as they go about reshaping my previously tidy garden!
A huge thanks to you and all our supporters for flying the flag for farm animals; I remain humbled and overwhelmed by your generosity and commitment.
