News broke this morning of Animal Aid‘s investigation of Bowood Lamb, a slaughterhouse in Yorkshire. Taken over three days in December, the investigation found that sheep were beaten and had their throats hacked open while they were still conscious.
Gruesome as the footage is, the actual slaughter, whether the animal is stunned before being killed or not, is only part of the long and blatantly cruel process of modern meat production.
The vast majority of the 1 billion animals eaten every year in the UK are raised on filthy, crowded factory farms, where they are crammed by the thousands into windowless sheds, wire cages, crates and other confinement systems and denied everything that matters to them – all of which contradicts the basic principles of compassion and reverence for life shared by most religions. Yes, people have a right to know how their food was produced (or, in the case of animals, killed), but the way to end these abuses is not to simply avoid halal meat – it’s to avoid all meat. Because when it comes to showing respect for animals who are raised and killed for food, there is only one label that really matters: “vegan”.
Request a free copy of PETA’s vegan starter kit, which is packed full of recipes, tips on making the switch and more:
And sign the online petition to make closed-circuit television (CCTV) mandatory in all abattoirs, which would be a step towards creating transparency and stopping workers from getting away with abusing animals.
