Aussie Farms: Chris Delforce lists vegie farm on ‘animal cruelty’ map

Animal activist Chris Delforce has listed one of Victoria’s largest vegetable farms on the Aussie Farms map after he mistook the property for a poultry farm.

Far out Brussel Sprout online artwork

EXCLUSIVE: AUSSIE Farms has listed one of Victoria’s largest vegetable farms on its infamous “animal cruelty” map after it mistook the property for a poultry farm.

The Weekly Times can reveal at least one vegetable farm is listed on the map, which claims to pinpoint locations and businesses “known or suspected to be engaging in animal cruelty or exploitation”.

The vegetable grower, who The Weekly Times will not name, said he was definitely not being cruel to his vegies.

“We don’t farm any livestock here, but we do have some free-range lettuce,” the grower said. “This goes to show Aussie Farms doesn’t know what they are talking about.

“We have a glasshouse and they’ve obviously just assumed it was a chicken shed or piggery and put us on the map”.

The vegetable grower’s property is pinpointed on the Aussie Farms map with a question mark and the words “unknown”.

Aussie Farms executive director Chris Delforce said the “unknown” farms on the map were those he suspected were poultry or broiler businesses.

He has labelled 1246 or 21 per cent of the 5779 farms and businesses on his map as “unknown”.

Mr Delforce, who boasts about his map being “comprehensive” and eight years in the making, admitted the registered charity did not actually know if all properties on the map farmed animals.

This is despite Mr Delforce telling The Weekly Times last week all farms and businesses listed on the map were “known or suspected to be engaging in animal cruelty or exploitation”.

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Victorian Farmers Federation president David Jochinke said the revelations reinforced that the map was an “absolute disgrace”.

“This goes to show that the map is wildly inaccurate and more needs to be done to get it taken down,” he said. “It is defamatory and is taking a toll on farmers’ mental health due to the false accusations”.

AusVeg chief executive James Whiteside said it was “appalling” activists were attacking agriculture producers.

“AusVeg will be making contact with Aussie Farms to seek assurances that there are no other vegetable farmers included on this map,” he said.

The Weekly Times revealed last week Mr Delforce could face legal action by drawing links between farms on the map and animal cruelty.

The National Farmers’ Federation has not yet said if it would use the Australian Farmers’ Fighting Fund to instigate legal proceedings against Aussie Farms.