Potent mix of ignorance, social media fuel animal activism

Ignorance of farming has contributed to the rise of animal activism, according to one vocal young farmer.

Gone west: West Australian Zoe Carter says because of a lack of agriculture education, young people see farming as cruel. Picture: Madeleine stuchbery

IGNORANCE of farming has contributed to the rise of animal activism, according to one vocal young farmer.

Young Aussie Farmers’ Zoe Carter, who works on a cattle farm in Western Australia, said a lack of agricultural education in schools had made the spread of misinformation easier in the digital age, and that better education for schoolchildren was vital to future-proof the industry.

“One of the biggest issues is the schooling system,” Ms Carter said.

“It has this massive gap for agricultural education. Ask a kid where a lamb comes from and they’ll have no idea — they think skinning sheep is how you get wool. That first idea of agriculture is what PETA is telling them, what social media is telling them.”

Ms Carter said farmers had a responsibility when using social media to remedy misinformation.

“Social media, it’s huge. You have a handful of people doing the wrong thing, sharing photos of mulesing, and when you share that kind of image and people aren’t educated, then there’s that misconception,” Ms Carter said.

“People go on social media, and see the 1 per cent who abuse sheep, who do terrible things. That’s unfortunately the image that is now stuck in people’s heads.

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“You could be in cropping, producing their lentils, but too bad, they don’t like you.

“We’re the face of the industry. So we need to make sure we’re representing it well. Because for activists, (cruelty) is the now the face of agriculture.”