Request for guidance to animal welfare administration regarding pig cruelty at slaughterhouses (2020-2021)

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 an employee discovers an act that appears abusive by pig carriers, etc., it will be corrected appropriately to stop improper handling”. Efforts were made for improvement such as “Distributing OIE rules and improvement methods to vendors and making them known.” (Please see here for details）

However, investigations from 2020 to 2021 once again revealed abusive behavior.

We made a request to the Animal Welfare Department that has jurisdiction over the slaughterhouse C (2021/8/4).

Regarding this, we received a response on 2021/9/9.

We cannot be easily reassured from their response, as the abusive behaviors that were in 2016 are still taking place. However, at least the whole prefecture regarded the act on the pigs as a problem and took concrete measures.

Slaughterhouse F

Slaughterhouse F is the slaughterhouse that were first investigated between 2020 and 2021.

We made a request to the Animal Welfare Department that has jurisdiction over the slaughterhouse F (2021/8/4).

Regarding this, we received a response on 2021/9/17.

We told the animal welfare department what kind of response each government had taken regarding the abuses at other slaughterhouses that we made requests to improve. First of all, we are asking them to recognize that the behaviors that are being taken at the slaughterhouse F is a problem, and then to give guidance for improvement and take concrete measures.

The video is from slaughterhouses C and F.

What we can do

• Sign the petition: End cruel treatment of animals at slaughterhouses
• Raise awareness about the situations at slaughterhouses using social media
• Send opinions to the government Ministry of the Environment MAFF MHLW 
  All three ministries may say that “slaughterhouse welfare” is not under their jurisdiction, but please tell them that you want the three ministries to work together to improve the problem without avoiding responsibility.
• Reduce or stop the intake of animal products
  The fundamental problem lies in the mass production and consumption of animals. The reality is that animals are being sent to slaughterhouses one after another so that there is no room for consideration for each animal. Reducing or stopping the intake of animal products is the direct and immediate way to reduce suffering.