Animal justice protest after disturbing footage of animal abuse in Shropshire
Animal justice protesters demonstrated in Market Drayton to demand better care for livestock, after disturbing footage emerged of calves being punched, pushed and kicked in a Shropshire slaughterhouse.
Demonstrators from the Animal Justice Project held a protest on Wednesday - market day in Market Drayton - at Barbers Auctions, which hosts large livestock markets.
It came after the release of footage showing animals being physically abused at the Oaklands Livestock Centre, near Prees.
The shocking footage shows calves at Oaklands being thrown up and down ramps, punched and kicked in the head – the footage was filmed by the Animal Justice Project pressure group and released earlier this year.
WATCH the undercover footage here:
Warning: Contains distressing footage
Some of the calves came from farms contracted to the dairy giant Müller, which also has its headquarters in Market Drayton.
After the footage was made public, Müller released a statement saying that it had instructed farmers to cease supplying the centre with immediate effect.
As part of their protest in Market Drayton, the demonstrators delivered a petition signed by almost 5,000 people to Müller headquarters.
More pictures from the demonstration:
Ayrton Cooper, senior campaigner for Animal Justice Project, said: "Tighter policies by companies such as Muller also means the number of calves available for dealers to buy and sell will reduce, and the number of frightened calves traded at marts such as Barbers will also.
"We want the public to see the protest, reach out and learn about this horrific industry. Our message is that dairy still kills thousands of babies every year so we urge consumers to choose plant-based alternatives."
A Müller spokesman responded and said that the company has been proactive in tackling bad practice.
Alerted
“We will not tolerate mistreatment of animals and will always take action to eradicate bad or unacceptable practice.
“In this case we instructed farmers who supply Oaklands Livestock Centre to cease doing so with immediate effect.
“We alerted Red Tractor who monitor compliance with animal welfare and transport standards, resulting in removal of licenses to operate at this organisation.
“Dairy farmers who supply Müller have welcomed measures we put in place to stop the practice of euthanising bull calves on farm.
“We expect those which are then sold for rearing to be subject to welfare standards which are fully compliant with guidelines and best practice.
“Rearing units are ordinarily the subject of regular inspections and monitoring. Where failures of this kind occur, we will act quickly.”
