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Since 2016, Animal Rights Center Japan has been conducting a survey once a year using a private company to see how well the actual rearing of livestock animals is recognized by consumers. We report the results of the survey conducted in 2022 (the number of valid responses was 1,214). The questions are the following 10 items: Do you know that many of the sows are trapped in a gestation crate, a narrow enclosure in which they can’t turn around? Do you know that many of the piglets are castrated and have their teeth and tails clipped without anesthesia? Do you know that many of the chickens for eggs are kept…
Mayonnaise is one of the most competitive products regarding animal welfare. Mayonnaise is said to be a “semi-solid dressing made mainly of cooking oil, vinegar, and eggs”, and eggs have been widely used. Eggs are not really necessary; the same flavor, taste, and texture are possible without eggs. Therefore, many egg-free mayonnaise are sold at low prices. For companies to go cage free, they don’t really need to procure expensive cage-free mayonnaise at this time; they can just use egg-free ones. A wide variety of mayonnaise is sold. Recently, the variety of mayonnaise with cage-free eggs are increasing. What we’d like to commend the most is the private brand “Bioral…
From July 2021 to January 2022, ARCJ ran a 6-month campaign about eyestalk ablation in shrimp farming, thanks to a grant from Compassion in World Farming International. The campaign’s objectives were: to raise awareness about shrimp eyestalk ablation to reduce farmed shrimp consumption to encourage aquaculture certification labels to prohibit eyestalk ablation The target audiences were the general public and aquaculture certifiers like ASC and MEL. Activities during the campaign: Commissioned internet-based public surveys at the beginning and the end of the campaign to measure the awareness levels and opinions regarding shrimps. Made an illustration and launched a campaign website, disseminating a press release to 30 media outlets. Designed an…
From last July until January, Animal Rights Center Japan ran a #ShrimpsMatter campaign to raise awareness about shrimp eyestalk ablation. Partly to measure the effects of this campaign, we commissioned a survey at the end of July, and again with identical questions in January this year. After briefly describing the actual practice of breeder shrimps getting one of their eyes removed in aquaculture, including videos and photos on this campaign site, we asked 12 questions: 1. Before seeing this survey, did you know that shrimps can feel suffering? 2. Had you thought that you want to know about the breeding methods and breeding environments of shrimps that you eat? 3. Did…
In recent years, we have been making films for the general public based on footage of animal farms sent to ARCJ and our investigation activities. This is an attempt to have many people become aware of and think about the issues of animal agriculture. At the “Labor Festa” held on December 25, 2021, the screened “Please give me water, or light” won the Jury Prize. In addition, this work won first place in the participant questionnaire announced at a later date, and it is the first time that the animal-themed work won the award and attracted the attention of the audience at a film event dealing with many hard-line social…
Aman resorts, which operate a resort hotel chain mainly in Southeast Asia, Europe, the United States, and China, released a cage-free policy in 2021, and in response to an inquiry from Animal Rights Center Japan, its Japanese locations, Aman Tokyo, Aman Kyoto, and Amanemu, made a cage-free commitment to transition to using only cage-free eggs by the end of 2023. Aman in Japan: background for the cage free transition ARCJ began negotiations with Aman Tokyo / Amanemu representatives for cage-free in 2020, during the COVID-19 emergency declaration. Aman Tokyo had already used cage-free eggs for some menus, but initially it seemed difficult, under COVID, to make the decision to switch…
On 2021/11/11, we are able to deliver great news for pigs. NH Foods Group made an announcement as follows. Promote initiatives that take animal welfare into consideration Elimination of gestation crates on all NH farms (pigs)To be eliminated from all domestic NH farms by the end of 2030* Installation of drinking water facilities in lairage pens at all NH meat processing plants (pigs and cattle)To be installed at all domestic bases by the end of 2023* Installation of cameras on all NH farms and meat processing plants to ensure environmental qualityTo be installed at all domestic bases by the end of 2023* * For companies in which the NH Foods…
On 2021/11/1, Hotel Matsumotoro, focusing on both animal welfare and the SDGs, has announced that by 2027 it will switch to 100% cage-free or free-range eggs. As a result of discussions with the certified NPO Animal Rights Center Japan, it came to this decision. The cage free policy is spelled out in Hotel Matsumotoro’s declaration toward achieving SDGs ( http://www.matsumotoro.com/img/sdgs.pdf ): Indicator for 2030 on the transition to a sustainable diet: “Switch to 100% cage-free eggs by 2027” Also added to its priority efforts are: “Active introduction of plant-based protein”“Introduction of ingredients considering animal welfare” Hotel Matsumotoro’s young proprietress Yuki Matsumoto described this cage-free initiative as follows. “Hotel Matsumotoro aims…
Previously in Japan, JAS Certification for organic livestock was the only animal welfare certification with standards that could satisfy the Five Freedoms. This changed, however, in October 2021 when Yamanashi Prefecture announced new “Yamanashi Animal Welfare Certification Standards”. The Yamanashi Animal Welfare Certification Standard is separated into two tiers: Effort Certification, which evaluates the initiative’s effort, and Achievement Certification, which evaluates the actual result. As with JGAP and other certifications, the criteria for Effort Certification consist of items that are fairly basic in raising animals and are included in the “Guidelines for Animal Feeding Management Corresponding to the Concept of Animal Welfare” established by Japan Livestock Technology Association. For instance,…
New report reveals 8 reasons why it’s cruel and unsustainable Compassion in World Farming and Animal Rights Center Japan have written to the Japanese government urging them to stop octopus factory farming as a new report, released today (8 October 2021), on World Octopus Day, reveals that it is cruel and damaging to the planet. Compassion’s report – ‘Octopus Factory Farming – A Recipe for Disaster’ – reveals how the octopus would suffer greatly in farms due to its solitary and inquisitive nature and exposes the lack of any approved humane slaughter method. In addition, there is currently no legislation to protect their welfare in farms and their carnivorous diet…
Asahikawa Koen Guest House In response to an inquiry from Animal Rights Center Japan, Asahikawa Koen Guest House in Asahikawa City, Hokkaido, responded that all the eggs they use are already cage free and that they would support the cage-free commitment. Asahikawa Koen Guest House is an accommodation facility that aims to be a place for local gatherings, with local production for local consumption as much as possible. Cage-free eggs are used for breakfast, and they apparently explain the goodness of cage-free rearing. The owner says, ”One of the reasons why cage-free eggs do not spread is that even if you know cage-free eggs as a word, you do…
As mentioned in this article, to the slaughterhouse C and slaughterhouse F, which had been abusive to pigs from 2020 to 2021, we had requested the animal welfare department that has jurisdiction over each of the slaughterhouses to provide improvement guidance. We report on the results. Slaughterhouse C Not only this time, but also in 2016, abusive behaviors (heavy use of stun guns, kicking, riding pigs and kicking the face) were exposed at the slaughterhouse C, and at that time, we were requesting the meat hygiene inspection responsible for the slaughterhouse to make improvements. The Meat Inspection Center regards the abusive behavior at this time as a problem, and “if…
At the end of July, we commissioned a public survey in advance of the #ShrimpsMatter campaign. After briefly describing the actual practice of breeder shrimps getting one of their eyes removed in aquaculture, including videos and photos on this campaign site, we asked 12 questions with the following 4 choices: Yes Rather yes Rather no No Before seeing this survey, did you know that shrimps can feel suffering? Had you thought that you want to know about the breeding methods and breeding environments of shrimps that you eat? Did you know that in shrimp farming, eyes are getting cut off? Do you feel you want to avoid shrimps from farms…
On 2021/8/10, we learned that the Cabinet Office had adopted cage-free. Eggs procured in the Cabinet Office cafeteria will only be cage-free or free-range going forward, and cage rearing will not be used. This wonderful achievement was promoted by both the Cabinet Office and the cafeteria operator Nikkoku Trust, and will be highly regarded in Japan as a progressive and ambitious decision. In fact, eggs used from August 10 have already been switched to cage-free! A few years before the launch of plant-based products in Japan became a boom, the Cabinet Office introduced vegan food in the cafeteria and continues to do so. This wave spread not only to the…
Dogs and cats have been subjects of charges with animal cruelty, but other animals continue to be “non-prosecuted” as if they were in a lawless zone.We can say that the attitude of protecting only dogs and cats and not other animals reflect the low maturity of this country. Some may believe that better treatment of dogs and cats will improve situations for other animals, but this theory is unfounded and the gap has instead kept widening. However, the penalties of the Act on Welfare and Management of Animals apply to all protected animals, whether they are kept in test facilities, under experiment, confined in livestock farms, or being killed at…
In August, Animal Rights Center Japan, the leading animal protection organization in Japan, launched a campaign to raise awareness about farmed shrimps and prawns, whose lives are sacrificed in greater numbers than other animals used for food. In particular, this campaign will inform consumers of the fact that one eye of the female breeder shrimp/prawn is removed in most farms. More than 90% of the shrimps sold in Japan are imported, about 6 billion individuals every year. 80% of them come from Asian countries such as India, Vietnam, and Indonesia, and almost all of them are farmed. In these farms typically, the young female shrimps and prawns get one of…
The Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics will begin on July 23, 2021, under the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Controlling the pandemic is a major issue in the Olympic Games. However, there is another important issue that has not received full attention, namely, animal welfare. Last month, Animal Rights Center Japan submitted a statement of request to the Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (TOCOG) and the Cabinet Office. The statement insisted that standards for procuring livestock products for the Tokyo Olympics were insufficient and that battery-cage eggs, gestation-crate pork, and overcrowded chickens should not be provided in the Olympic Village. While the TOCOG and the Cabinet Office did respond…
When you trace back where your food came from, you’ll find many footprints. By the time they get on your plate, some ingredients use a lot of water, emit greenhouse gases, afflict animals, and slaughter animals. For the energy to support you for 24 hours, how much resources are you using and causing suffering? To choose food with thought, let’s first follow your footprint. https://www.hopeforanimals.org/animal-footprint-en/ On 2021/6/25, Animal Rights Center Japan released “Food Footprint Calculator” for knowing the impacts of what we eat. By entering your food consumption into this calculator, you can find out: How many animals you eat each year How many hours of animal suffering you cause…
The Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics are expected to begin in July 2021 after a one-year postponement. As the Tokyo Games will be held during the COVID-19 pandemic, all participants must take additional precautions to protect their health. This goes beyond just disinfecting; it is also important to raise immunity, avoid crowding, and stay away from related risks. Diet, specifically the ingredients in food, play a crucial role in raising immunity among the atheletes. The standards for procuring livestock products for the Tokyo Games were established in 2017. Animal welfare levels are minimal in comparison to world standards. For example, at the London Games, free-range eggs were the minimum standard. At…
The multi-partisan parliamentary group aiming for zero killing of dogs and cats has established a project team for amending the Animal Welfare Act. Since its launch on August 25, 2023, the PT has held 21 meetings to hear from stakeholders and deliberate on the direction of amendments. Out of these 21 sessions, however, only one touched on livestock animals, and just one on laboratory animals. Despite 1 billion livestock animals being killed annually, the issue remains far from the priorities of lawmakers. In the sole PT meeting addressing livestock, the discussions showed promise, but it is unlikely to expect significant amendments by 2025 at this rate. 17th PT: Hearings on…
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