Animal activist invasions: huge mental toll on farmers

The state government’s inquiry into pig welfare has heard how animal activist invasions have affected pig producers. See the latest.

Pork producer Tim Kingma wants recognition of the good farmers deliver the community, rather than being “the number one target” of animal activists.

Animal activist invasions have taken a heavy toll on producers, their workers and families, leading one to even consider suicide, Victoria’s parliamentary inquiry into pig welfare has heard.

Victorian Farmers Federation pig group president David Wright told the inquiry repeated attacks had left him “living with anxiety, I’m medicated for”.

On another occasion he spent almost two hours talking a fellow pork producer down from suicide after activists invaded.

Both Mr Wright and fellow producer Tim Kingma fronted the inquiry this week to call for greater recognition of the good they do for their communities, rather than being “the number one target” of animal activists.

Mr Wright said the Labor Government had implemented tough new biosecurity and trespass laws, but was being let down by the judicial system when it came to prosecutions.

In April last year, seven Farm Transparency Project animal activists were arrested for allegedly breaking into C.A Sinclair’s Benalla abattoir, but it appears no prosecutions have been made.

Mr Wright said he had spoken to Colin Sinclair, who was dealing with the emotional burden of the invasion, which followed activists secretly taking footage of pigs being gassed in Sinclair’s and other abattoirs.

It was this footage that prompted Labor, the Greens and Animal Justice Party to announce the inquiry, which is being chaired by AJP MP Georgie Purcell.

Animal activists and welfare groups fronted the inquiry yesterday, with the Farm Transparency

Group director Chris Delforce stating “extreme animal suffering is inherent and systemic to this (pig) industry” and calling for “a two year phase-out of commercial pig farming”.

Activist Chris Delforce. Picture: Farm Transparency Project

Animals Australia also called for a prohibition on CO2 stunning of pigs, having already launched Supreme Court action against CA Sinclairs and Victorian meat industry regulator PrimeSafe over the use of the gas.

But PrimeSafe and the Victorian Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action joined Australian Pork limited and meat processing giant JBS in lodging submissions to the inquiry highlighting that CO2 gas was the global standard.

DEECA’s submission states “a total of 1,202,060 pigs were slaughtered in Victoria in abattoirs in the 2022-23 licence year – (with) approximately 93 per cent of these pigs were subject to gas stunning”.

DEECA listed gas stunning as approved in Europe, the UK, US and Canada, given it enabled “abattoirs to handle and stun small groups of pigs” and avoid “individual handling and restraint required for electrical or captive bolt stunning”.

APL submitted that “over the past two decades, there have been numerous research projects conducted to find alternative gases to CO2 stunning, but no alternative gases are yet available commercially that provides animal welfare benefits over CO2.

“The issues reported with alternative gases and mixtures include longer stunning times, shorter stun-to-stick intervals, conflicting results regarding aversion signs, higher cost of gases, difficulty in handling lighter gases than air, and the negative impact on meat quality and the environment.”

JBS submitted it used CO2 stunning in its abattors “as it aligns with the welfare guidelines of the World Organisation for Animal Health, the global authority in this matter”.