The farmers who want to look their livestock in the eye before slaughter

Tammi Jonas loves eating meat but is adamant she only wants to consume animals she has looked in the eye.

Soon, the small-scale pork and beef farmer based in north central Victoria will apply that philosophy to the way her animals die, too.

Tammi Jonas in the cool room at her farm in Eganstown. Credit: Joe Armao

Jonas and her husband Stuart last month won the right to have an abattoir on their family property, Jonai Farms in Eganstown, defeating a challenge by neighbours in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

The farmers hope to begin slaughtering animals by the end of winter in a facility built into a shipping container – a response to rising concerns among small-scale farmers about restricted access to large slaughterhouses.

Jonas said she could give her animals a humane and instant death on the farm.

“They will be looking out at the paddocks and won’t know it’s coming,” she said.

Some of the pigs on Jonai Farms. Credit: Joe Armao

Objecting neighbours had wanted the tribunal to order a review of the Hepburn Shire’s decision to grant permission for the abattoir. They argued it was an unacceptable land use in the farming area and that Jonai Farms needed to demonstrate it would not cause “unreasonable amenity impacts”, including noise, dust and odour.

However, the tribunal decided it was appropriate for the abattoir to be located on the land zoned for farming and granted a permit.

Under the conditions approved by the tribunal, the abattoir will be allowed to process up to 30 pigs or six beef cattle on one day a week.

One of the objectors, who asked not to be named for privacy reasons, said that while the tribunal decision was not precisely what his group had sought, it succeeded in enshrining conditions necessary to protect the “pristine environment of the Hepburn area”.

Stuart Jonas feeding the pigs this week.Credit: Joe Armao

He said most of the objectors were neighbours of Jonai Farms who had lived in the area for decades – many farmers themselves.

But Jonas said building the abattoir was a matter of survival for her family business. She told the tribunal that there had been a decrease in access to major abattoirs, particularly for small operators.

“Some local abattoirs have closed, others are being purchased by multinational corporations, and some are stopping the processing of particular livestock and/or the livestock from smaller farm holdings,” she told the tribunal.

Jonas told The Age that having the small abattoir on the farm meant there was less stress for the animals because they would not be transported by truck to slaughterhouses.

“A lot of vegans have had a go at us, saying ‘how can you eat an animal you knew?’ Some omnivores even say the same thing,” Jonas said.

“But there’s still something about the relationship with that animal and knowing its whole story before I ingest it.”

Some large abattoirs use CO₂ gas to stun pigs – which has been criticised by animal rights groups – before they are bled to death. Jonas said her abattoir would use captive bolts to stun the animals before bleeding them out, which she maintained was much more humane.

She said knowing the animals intimately and slaughtering them on the farm meant they valued every part – from the choice cuts to the offal and hide.

Jonas said she was confident there would be buyers for almost all parts of the animals.

Late last year, the ABC reported major abattoir Hardwicks in Kyneton told producers they would no longer process local organic animals. Kilcoy Global Foods, which is owned by Chinese private equity firm Hosen Capital, bought Hardwicks in 2021. The Age contacted Kilcoy for comment.

Victorian Farmers Federation president Emma Germano agreed it was becoming harder to access slaughterhouses. “Micro abattoirs may be part of the solution,” she said.

But Germano said operating an abattoir required a licence from state meat regulator PrimeSafe, which was a rigorous process.

Victorian Farmers Federation president Emma Germano agrees it is becoming harder for small farmers to access abattoirs. Credit: Jason South

“It’s quite complicated,” she said. “That’s the reason we have such good food safety standards.”

Toni Barton, who farmed lambs in Nulla Vale near Kyneton, said difficulty accessing abattoirs contributed to her decision to sell her farm this year.

“I could see the writing on the wall,” she said.

Barton, who sold meat directly to consumers, said there were widespread concerns about limited opportunities to use abattoirs among producers that served Victoria’s farmers markets.

“The future of food is very worrying in Victoria,” she said.

Agriculture Victoria confirmed it was aware of the issues small-scale livestock producers faced in accessing abattoirs.

“We’re helping more farmers access processing facilities with initiatives like mobile abattoirs while also supporting the development of smaller-scale abattoirs through dedicated planning services and by simplifying regulations – so that small producers can sell direct at markets, farm gate or online,” a spokesman said.

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