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Say NO to Practice of Starving Animal to Death in Industry A broiler chicken company in Wakayama prefecture reportedly starved 140,000 chickens to death in 2020. The company belonged to the Arita Poultry Agricultural Cooperative. According to Wakayama prefecture, a chicken slaughterhouse owned by the same owner of this broiler chicken company went bankrupt first, which resulted in the inability to relocate the chickens , then starvation. They claimed they could not afford putting these chickens down, either. The prefecture didn’t step in to help euthanize the birds, either. And yet, the prefecture promptly executed an aid to clean up the corpses that cost approximately 100 million JPY, and handed…
In March 2020, we inquired the young owner of Tabinoyado Saikawa about making a cage-free declaration. This ryokan was an inn that newly created a vegan option, and they knew the significance of a lifestyle that promotes diversity and eliminates animal products. And when we introduced a cage-free egg farm available in Aomori, they went cage-free right away. They researched the current state of the animals and made the decision immediately. All shelled eggs used have already been switched immediately. They are also gradually switching over eggs contained in processed foods like mayonnaise. Currently, travel is difficult due to the novel coronavirus, but hopefully this pandemic will subside in the summer,…
December 2019, midnight. At a slaughterhouse in Japan, this cow was tied with a very short rope passed through the nose ring, awaiting slaughter the next morning. The length of the rope was so short that the cow could not lie down, and even limited his ability to move the head up or down. The cow with his behavior severely restricted continued to stand there, stepping and licking around the mouth with his tongue. Not even a water drinking facility. Even if there were, his mouth probably couldn’t reach there with the short rope. He is in this state until he is killed the next day. Ability to drink…
Since 2016, Animal Rights Center Japan has been conducting a survey once a year using a private company to find out how much awareness there is about the actual rearing conditions of livestock animals. We have now conducted a survey for 2020, so will report the results. The questions are the following 10 items. Do you know that many of the mother pigs are confined in gestation stalls, small enclosures 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 in metal wire…
HORIZON FARMS has made animal welfare declarations, one for stall-free in February, and then cage-free and better chicken in March. Horizon Farms, which has been procuring meat with commitment to animal welfare in rearing methods since its beginning, is a company that has always considered the inquiries of us animal protection groups seriously and thinks about what they can do for farm animals. The company, as noted on its website, only procures meat from farms that thoroughly take care of the reared animals. For this reason most is imported from overseas, but this time it will begin procuring cage-free eggs from a carefully selected domestic poultry farm; the triple declarations…
The comments by our government were the worst The comments by our government were the worst The OIE (World Organization for Animal Health) submitted the third draft for animal welfare codes for egg laying hens. It will be adopted in May 2020 after concerned countries review it and give feedback about this draft. Japan also reviewed and submitted its comments to the OIE after holding committees called “OIE liaison committee” from the end of December 2019 through January 2020. You can view each member’s comment here. The government’s feedback was as though it would overwrite these members’ opinions.* Here is the summary of the comments by our government: They commented…
After considering animal welfare alone, HORIZON FARMS, which is committed to free-range grazing, has made a stall-free declaration, promising to never lock mother pigs into gestation stalls, now and in the future. According to HORIZON FARMS staff, they make procurements while constantly checking with rigorous eyes whether especially the pregnant pigs are spending time relaxed, whether they have good care during child bearing, and whether the interactions between piglets and mother pigs are realized. At HORIZON FARM, which asserts that “In low-cost, high-volume animal agriculture, animal welfare is ignored. We never compromise the health of the animals and the consumers for the sake of increasing productivity”, they offer meat from…
Broiler chickens — 700 million are killed every year within Japan alone. Nearly double if imports are included. Japanese chickens suffer from overcrowding. Poultry farms in Japan are 1.7 times denser than in the EU and 1.8 times denser than in Brazil. While Thailand and other countries are improving, Japan is not improving. Why? Because people living in Japan do not know anything. They haven’t even noticed that chicken farms for meat in Japan are much worse than the world standard. A number like 700 million may paralyze your senses. But can you not tell by looking at the individual face and the facial expressions? That he or she is…
2019 was a year with many natural disasters due to violent typhoons. Animal Rights Center Japan has investigated livestock animals in the affected areas and saved records of them. A 3-minute film “Don’t leave me” edited based on footage taken at those times received the Murakami Hiroyasu award (director of films such as “Tokyo Higata”) inithe 3-minute video corner at the Labor Festa (an event about documentary films, etc) held in Tokyo Tamachi Transport Hall on December 21. (★ There are some scenes that are difficult to watch in the footage.) It’s a small piece, but that the livestock animals in the affected areas are…
OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health) in September 2019 prepared and presented the 3rd draft of the “Animal Welfare and Laying Hen Production Systems”. The development of the “Animal Welfare and Laying Hen Production Systems” has been under discussion since 2017, and especially for the second draft last year, there were embarrassing opinions from Japan that the animal welfare standard should be significantly lowered. Similar opinions were expressed not only by Japan but also by the United States, but Japan’s strong and backward attitude seems to have left a strong impression in the world. In response, 3rd draft was created, but the content was reduced to a level that would…
On December 3rd 2019, a member from the House of Representatives in Gunma prefecture, Keinin Horikoshi, asked Minister Shinjiro Koizumi of the Ministry of Environment questions about the needs of animal welfare for livestock animals. The OIE Standards, which the Ministry of Environment at the Committee on Environment in May 2019 promised to follow, were supposed to be known to the local officials through their study group sessions. How does Minister Koizumi understand animal welfare issues on livestock animals? Mr. Horikoshi emphasized the importance of leadership by the Ministry of Environment on this issue: There was some progress in this issue in certain aspects. I believe the leadership by the…
The fraction of supermarkets carrying cage-free eggs increased to 51%. Animal welfare, spreading in Japan as well. Animal Rights Center Japan, with support from 77 volunteers in 24 prefectures nationwide from August 1 to September 31, 2019, surveyed 270 stores for animal welfare and plant-based protein availability. In the “Green Consumer Nationwide Store Survey 2015” sponsored by the nonprofit Citizens Environmental Foundation and participated by multiple organizations including the Animal Rights Center in 2015, 22% of the supermarkets sold eggs that were labeled cage-free or free-range, and 16% of supermarkets sold milk labeled “free range” or “grazing”. In 2019, the concept of animal welfare seems to have spread a lot,…
Thank you for sending us videos, photos, and episodes of many chickens who are kind, intelligent, and worth their lives on their own. Every chicken was wonderful and adorable and it was difficult to make the selection, but the Animal Rights Center Japan board members voted for the chickens and their episodes, and chose the following. Grand Prize: Displaying the very character of the chickens! 北海道旭川市の 星 穏佳 さんと同居している鶏たち。 「ケージ飼育知らずににわとりかいをしました。知って涙なしにいられませんでした。周りは狭いところが飼うのがあたりまえ。自分はその飼い方にいつしか疑問を持つようになりました。 嘴を切る必要性の無さ、 オスのにわとりをミンチにする無意味さ、 すべて不自然。 農業も不自然ですが、畜産はもっともっと不自然。」 「冬は小屋の中？閉じ込める？ んなことしなくても、寒くなれば 勝手に小屋に帰るよ。 だって、うちら自由にうごける足があるしさ。」 Outstanding: Great co-existence of chickens and humans! 愛知県の野田典子さん家族と同居しているちっぷさんとあんこさん。 「ストレスなく快適に暮らす事は人間以外の生き物にも当たり前の権限だと思います」 Like a tomboy ^^ 丸岡圭一さんの家に勝手に住み着いたフランキー。 View this post on Instagram A post shared by 丸岡 圭一 (@maruokakeiichi) Very lively! 千葉県のErinaさんと一緒に生活をしているストライプちゃんとゴールドちゃん。 「毎日100パーセントの愛情を込めて 一緒に生活しています。 お散歩へ出掛けると、ケージの中とは違って、目の輝きや行動が凄くいきいきとし…
The livestock industry uses animals daily and works side-by-side with death. The trapped animals mean death if humans stop feeding them. Inappropriate treatment is abuse, and animals are suffering from mistreatment. The situation is determined by the livestock farmer’s one arrangement, one consideration, one lazy heart, one action without courage, and the animals are all under the dominion. Japan is a disaster powerhouse. Earthquakes, water disasters, and typhoons often come and leave great scars every year. In recent years, “stricken areas” keep increasing dramatically. When these two things are considered together, livestock farmers must prepare for disasters much more than usual, and in the event of a disaster, they should…
Even with a thin rubber mat laid on the concrete, every time the cows lay down, get up, or toss and turn, their 700 kg weight strains their joints and bones, and their muscles only get weaker, unable to even exercise. The fur on the cows’ joints wear down, their skins get exposed, further causing bruises, their flesh gets exposed, and the tissues get destroyed. Please don’t buy milk from Tie stalls dairy farms. In supermarkets, you can almost never find ethical milk. Please replace cow milk with soy milk or almond milk. If you want to use cow milk, please order grazing cow milk. Consumer choices change the situations…
No land animals are used as much as broiler chickens for meat. In Japan, 700 million chickens are raised per year. For this reason, improving situations for these animals would make a huge impact in terms of animal welfare. It is also important to take this issue seriously for our sustainable society since it is deeply connected to the issue of drug resistance. Many European companies signed up for the European Chicken Commitment. It was initiated by an animal welfare organization that set better standards for raising chickens. In the Commitment, various proposals are suggested to solve issues for chicken in light of animal welfare. Issue 1: TOO BIG. TOO…
Japan is still in a situation where 99% of eggs are produced from battery cages, and the industry is clinging to this old rearing method. However, there will be no future there. In USA, sale of caged eggs have been banned starting in Massachusetts, then in California, Washington, and Oregon. Furthermore, Other states tried to ask the Supreme Court to repeal the law in Massachusetts but the Supreme Court did not accept the lawsuit. Eggs in the US are inexpensive. Unlike in Japan, it must be advantageous to be able to produce feed within the country, and to have large production volumes with large facilities. It seems that Japan wants…
Regarding the animal welfare regulations on rearing method that the International Animal Health Organization OIE is trying to formulate, Japan continues to give negative opinions saying “reasonable flexibility should be ensured considering various production modes”. In response to industry and national attitudes, we, the Animal Rights Center Japan, have requested that animal welfare be enhanced in collaboration with other animal rights groups. Consumer groups have also joined the national committee and are speaking out for animal welfare. However, the opinions of NGOs are not reflected at all. The chicken farm shown in this video is from Japan. This is the result of ensuring reasonable flexibility. There is no law at…
RICCO gelato Co., Ltd., which operates stores on Okinawa Miyakojima and in Tokyo, is popular with a variety of flavors that ice cream lovers won’t get bored with. Precise allergen labeling is also one of the attractions, and there are many types of ice cream that does not use milk or eggs. There are also sales via an online store, so many people are probably using it; when inquired, we confirmed that cage-free eggs are used in all products in addition to ice cream. RICCO gelato Co. Chief Director Yutaka Maeno said: Even if it takes extra effort, we’d like consumers to eat safe and delicious food. Rearing chickens cage-free…
What is Cattle’s Individual Identification Number? You may have seen “Cattle’s Individual Identification numbers” on packages when you buy Japanese beef at a supermarket. These Cattle’s Individual Identification numbers are attached to cow’s ears as well as displayed on the meat package at supermarkets. Since Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) was first observed in 2001 in Japan, there has been a huge demand of traceability about where the cattle were born and transported. Thus, the Law for Special Measures Concerning the Management and Relay of Information for Individual Identification of Cattle came into effect in 2003. Consumers can obtain information of the trace by looking up the individual identification numbers displayed…
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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