Animal Liberation groups from around Australia have chained themselves to a Victorian slaughterhouse gas chamber to coincide with the release of damning undercover pig gas chamber footage showing just how much pigs suffer in the slaughter process.
Today, footage from a two year undercover investigation has been released by Animal Liberation Victoria and Animal Liberation NSW. This footage details the horrific pig abuse in Australian abattoirs and shows quite blatantly how these animals suffer. Activists from four states are carrying out non-violent civil disobedience actions at one of the slaughterhouses which was under investigation—chaining themselves to the gas chambers, blockading transport trucks to give respite and water to the terrified and exhausted pigs, occupying and dropping banners from the slaughterhouse rooftop, and ringing police to ensure the violence and cruelty to pigs is stopped.
The Diamond Valley Pork Slaughterhouse in Laverton saw four protesters walk in at 2am this morning and shut down the abattoir for hours. Approximately 50 protesters continued the demonstration outside the slaughterhouse. A group of eight activists stationed on the roof of the facility came down shortly before 10am after peaceful negotiations with police.
Pig Truth from Animal Rights on Vimeo. Warning: Viewing content will be distressing.
This joint campaign between ALV and ALN details the horrifying methods of how pigs are being mercilessly forced with high amperage electric prods into metal cages, then lowered into a gas chamber where they scream, thrash, kick and struggle to escape as the gas causes burning sensations throughout their bodies and they suffocate.
The majority of pigs in Australia, including “free range” pigs, are killed in these carbon dioxide gas cambers, which are said to be “best practice”. The industry blatantly lies to the public stating that these gas cambers are “humane” as if pigs simply fall asleep with no stress whatsoever. This undercover footage tells a vastly different story.
These gas cambers result in an incredibly distressing, anxiety-filled, scary and painful experience where pigs burn from the inside out due to the formation of carbonic acid.
During early 2014, Aussie Farms also released undercover footage which showed pigs screaming and thrashing as they gasp for air inside the gas chambers of Australia’s biggest pig abattoir owned by Rivalea Australia. The industry recognises that because pigs are highly intelligent and easily distressed, group gassing is touted as the most “humane” method of rendering them unconscious before they are slaughtered. However, the Australian meat industry standard requires a CO2 concentration at least four times higher than what is scientifically known to avoid distress. The result? An incredibly distressing, anxiety-filled, scary and painful experience.
Startling, this undercover investigation revealed something even more horrific. As the undercover investigation involved climbing down into a gas chamber to position hidden cameras, the activist needed to wear an oxygen tank. The activist who did so immediately noticed their eyes burning, which led to this discovery: When carbon dioxide reacts with liquids or mucus coated membranes (like that of the eyes, nostrils, sinuses, throat, and lungs), it forms carbonic acid—from their first lungful of gas, these pigs are burning from the inside out.
No one deserves to suffer like this, but billions of animals do every single year at the hand of humans. There is no way to kill someone “humanely” when they have an interest in living—taking it from them is by force and such undercover footage shows te immense suffering which occurs. The animal agriculture industry attempts to justify such practices continually with heavy marketing and non-stop propaganda that meat is apparently good for you, but these animals die unnecessarily when humans are able to live healthy, nutritious lives without consuming animal products.
All activists involved in this action have taken a vow of non-violence and are putting themselves peacefully between the innocent animals and the horrific death that awaits them. We are closing down this slaughterhouse for as long as we can, not just to draw attention to this torturous method of killing, but to draw attention to the violence that is inherent in animal agriculture. This action is an attempt to bring the real concept of peace and respect for others into our troubled world. To strike at the very roots of violence and destruction.
Patty Mark, ALV Founder