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There are various support systems for the livestock industry implemented by the country, but one of them is Comprehensive Subsidies for Developing Strong Agriculture & Leaders. As previously reported in another article, from 2018, when using this grant to establish a local meat production center (slaughterhouse), consideration for animal welfare has become required. In the case of implementing the maintenance of local meat centers among livestock product processing facilities, efforts shall be made to effectively utilize the recycling of slaughter residue, etc., and handle livestock in consideration of animal welfare. Although it is not specific, it was a step forward in animal welfare that such a sentence was added to…
On June 27th, the meat processing companies Primaham and Starzen held annual shareholders assemblies in Tokyo, and this year we were in front of the venues to encourage shareholders to ask the companies questions about the confined pig breeding practice. A total of 12 people took part in the action toward abolishing pregnancy stalls, asking shareholders to comment on the use of pregnancy stalls at the meetings. We handed out over 150 copies of targeted flyers of Primaham and over 100 copies to Starzen, respectively. In the leaflets distributed, we encouraged the investors to ask their respective companies the following kinds of questions: Please tell us about your…
The 2 chickens, Ayumi and Nozomi, rescued from battery cages in 2018 and taken back by ARCJ. Because they were originally injured in the battery cage in the legs and the base of the feet, they were unable to walk. In particular, Nozomi had a broken bone in the base of her foot which was then reconnected crookedly, so her recovery was delayed. Seven months after coming to ARCJ, please take a look at their appearance. Ayumi Ayumu began running around immediately. At first, it seemed like she would topple over when she was about to walk, but her posture eventually improved, now looking like a chicken. Nozomi After spending…
Why “cultured meat” and “alternative meat” — animal sacrifice The graph below shows the estimated number of animals sacrificed around the world for meat, eggs, and dairy from 1961 to 2017. Source: FAOSTAT* Laying Eggs hen and Meat chicken use the left-most 1000Head axis, while Meat pig, Meat cattle, and Milk whole fresh cow use the inner axis. Here are the numbers of animals sacrificed in 2017. They amount to over 10 times the world population. Egg-laying hens 7.838 billion birds Broiler chickens 66.567 billion birds Pigs 1.486 billion heads Beef cattle 344.149 million heads Dairy cows …
Is your milk coming from healthy cows? When you imagine dairy cows, you might think of free-range cows. However 70% of farms in Japan keep their cows tied with a short rope called “tie stalls.” See the images below: The cows are tied with ropes in the pictures above. A tool called stanchions is used in the pictures below. Both farms are located in Japan. The majority of farmers use these methods while there are other methods called free-stalls or free-barns where cows can move around. In Japan, only 3% of farmers are estimated to allow cows to graze in a field as of 2012. The picture below shows the…
On June 13, 2019, the certified nonprofit organization Animal Rights Center Japan (Tokyo) launched the [Rethink-Milk.com] campaign, aiming to solve the issue of dairy cows getting their milk taken while being constricted by short chains or ropes for extended periods, unallowed to even walk. In this campaign, we will shed light to the existing situations of dairy cows in Japan, and the suffering and impacts on dairy cows brought about by tethering, and also raise public awareness by publishing questionnaire results from dairy manufacturers, and promote conversion to non-tethering rearing methods (free-range, free barn, free stall). Supermarkets are stocked with milk from animals suffering from tethering, and are not yet…
For all the animals, farmed and fished, who continue to be ignored in society. 251 people marched, for all the animals who are restrained from movement, in barren filthy cages, desperately breathing, desperately drinking, desparately eating, being forced to live, forcibly exploited, without any rewards for them, and then killed in horrific ways. June 1, 2019, Shibuya, Omotesando, Harajuku Thank you to our 251 comrades. We will never give up until there’s no more sacrifice of animals. From now on, let’s continue to raise our voices together for them. Please gain more information and utilize in your activism. https://arcj.org
Japanese eggs that got banned in Taiwan In 2018, due to oversupply of eggs, the price fell and the adult chicken renewal and empty shack extension project was launched, and millions of egg-laying chickens were slaughtered (details here). Egg prices are so low that they have fallen to the lowest level in the last 10 years, and production is said to be excessive *1. Wondering what happens to the extra eggs, the following article was published in the April issue of the Japan Chicken Industry News *2 with the title “Japanese eggs exceed Taiwan’s pesticide residue standard tolerance”. Chicken eggs exported from Japan in February were suspended from import because…
World’s 2nd largest meat producer Tyson Foods announced that it will debut their own plant-based protein alternatives this summer. Tyson Foods had previously invested in the plant-based meat company Beyond Meat, but in April this year Tyson sold its stake, intending to produce its own alternative products. According to research, the US meat-substitute retail market could reach $2.5 billion by 2023. (*1) Many other companies are engaged in this space, especially in Europe and North America. Canada’s largest meat product manufacturer Maple Leaf Foods bought the well-known plant-based brands Lightlife and Field Roast in 2017, and in October 2018 established a new plant-based food branch Greanleaf Foods (*2). In April this…
Nanakusano sato is a company that produces natural mayonnaise called “Matsuyda no Mayonnaise.” We found out the eggs this company uses are all cage-free. The company intends to keep this policy in the future. We confirmed this is the first Japanese company with such a policy. They said the reason they only use cage-free eggs is “it’s just simply natural.” This is from their website: What is natural? Don’t touch much. Don’t add much. Keep the conventional way. It takes effort, but it is natural to take time. Don’t overdo. Let nature take care of things. Nature will take care of crops, birds, and fermentation. While there are companies who…
It was shocking to hear the response by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF) to a question about animal welfare at the Tokyo Olympics asked by Councilor Katsuya Ogawa from Hokkaido at the House of Councilors Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Shocking response 1. Perhaps MAFF doesn’t know much about the group rearing of pigs? The OIE Pig Welfare Policy was established in May 2018, and it recommends that the sows be bred in groups, indicating that pregnancy stall breeding does not satisfy animal welfare (OIE Animal Welfare Code: Animal Welfare and Pig Production System. Article 7.13.1). In promoting group rearing, MAFF has expressed concerns as follows:…
Did you know that the majority of dairy farms in Japan tie the cows pretty much permanently with tethers or chains such that they can’t move sideways or back and forth? As many as 73% of dairy farms in Japan use such tie-stalls as the primary rearing method. Dairy cows in tie-stalls in Japan (ARCJ) They can’t even move away from floors covered in feces.（ARCJ) If you were forced to live on feces, tied down like this every day, how would you feel? Japan has no regulations regarding tethering of dairy cows, unlike in Europe. Regulations and Status in Europe In Denmark, 85% of cows used to be tethered in…
n November 2018, the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Wealth (MHLW) released an investigation report on the matter of slaughterhouses cramming chickens in cages and abandoning them for long hours. 72 hours of Abandonment The investigation by the MHLW was mentioned during the deliberation for the Ministry of Forestry, Agriculture, and Fisheries (MAFF) in the Diet on 21st November 2018. According to the report, the MHLW investigated 28 slaughterhouses out of 32 (as of 2016) in the country, excluding three houses in Okayama and one in Fukuoka. Investigations conducted by the MHLW typically focus on sanitary issues. Therefore, the results don’t present the facts that chickens cannot raise their heads…
In February 2019, hog cholera crossed the border of Gifu prefecture and reached Aichi, Nagano, Shiga, and Osaka prefectures. There are many livestock producers in the area of Tahara-city of Aichi prefeture. Many pigs have been killed since cholera was first observed in Gifu prefecture in 2018. The number of pigs killed has risen to 40,000 in total as of February 2019. It is horrifying to imagine there will be more pigs killed considering the concentration of such business in Tahara city in Aichi. The reports by media and comments by concerned parties only focus on economical damage. However, the biggest loss and victims are indeed pigs. It is not…
Marriott International is going cage-free by 2025! Please find their official statement from the link below. http://serve360.marriott.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Marriott_International_Cage-Free_Egg_Statement.pdf If you do not know the problem of caged eggs, you can find articles about caged eggs from this link. http://www.arcj.org/en/animals/factoryfarming/category/contents_type=77 A costumer asked them if this policy is also applied to hotels in Japan. They said yes! They also told her that they can serve you vegan meal at their hotels if you are vegan. *Animal Rights Center is still waiting for the response from Marriott International Japan. Marriott International is the biggest hotel chain company in the world. There are also many hotels in Japan owned or managed by Marriott. We believe that…
Following the rescue of two birds who have been fostered by the Open Sesame sanctuary, the Animal Rights Center rescued two egg-laying hens from a battery cage farm. They had difficulty walking and were about to be killed because they could not lay eggs. Their foster parents are Mrs. Ujiie, who had earlier taken in the battery cage chickens Koharu and Satsuki as their family. In the big yard at the family’s, the two birds were able to feel for the first time the feeling of the green grass well lit by the sun. They are still not able to walk as they wish. One of the birds cannot move…
Mother Sows in Captivity:sow stall in Japan A rearing method which has been illegalized in many countries is still used at more than 88% of pig farms in Japan. These are photos taken between 2015 and 2017 at Japanese hog raising farms. Sows are shut in a small cage called a sow stall (gestation create). Sows spend almost all of their entire life in a cage in which they cannot walk or turn. Sows engage in abnormal behaviors such as biting their cages, continuously doing chewing motions without food in their mouths, and drinking water without stopping. The EU banned sow stalls in 2013, and ten states in America have banned them.…
Dairy Cows Some forms do not tie cows until cows get old enough to be able to produce milk. However, often farms tie cows after they became able to produce milk until they die. Tie-stall housing system Survey taken by 畜産技術協会＊1 shows that 72.9 percent of farms in Japan take method of tie-stall system as a main rearing method of cows. In this method, cows are tied and their movement is very limitted. They cannot walk or turn around. Free stall, free barn 24.6 percent of farms in Japan take method of free stall or free barn. Free stall (cows can walk around in the pen and when they want to rest,…
In the restaurant chain, Jonathan in the family restaurant chain began selling foie gras products again from September 6, 2018. Not only these menus are very cheap, they overlapped foie gras in two tiers. It is a menu with no ethics at all. Click to access 180906.pdf Japan imports foie gras from France, Spain, Canada and USA this year. They have not announced which country foie gras produced in which country they are using, but in any case they are cruel. Please send your opinion to remove it from the menu immediately not to treat foie gras. TEL 0120-125-807 (Reception time: 9 am – 6 pm) https://www2.skylark.co.jp/inquiry/form.php?contact_type=5 To the shareholders of Skylark…
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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