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1.
ACTIVISM COMMENTARIES
It isn’t that Americans don’t
care as much about protecting farmed animals as do
Europeans, it’s that the U.S. political system
is driven more by money than democracy in comparison
to the European one. This explains the differences
in farmed animal legal protection between the two,
contends philosopher Peter Singer in a commentary
in The Guardian, a prominent London-based newspaper.
In the U.S., some 90% of female pigs used for breeding
purposes spend most of their lives in stalls measuring
2’x7’. Already outlawed in the U.K. and
Sweden, such stalls will be banned throughout the
European Union (E.U.) as of 2013. While no such national
measures are in sight in the U.S., voters in Arizona
and Florida passed a ban on the stalls by 62% and
55% respectively (see: http://tinyurl.com/ygchsa
and http://tinyurl.com/r6ff
). Similar confinement of calves used for veal production
has been banned in the E.U. since the first of this
year. In the U.S. the calf stalls are banned only
in Arizona, as a result of the aforementioned vote
(see http://tinyurl.com/ygchsa
). Pointing out that Arizona and Florida are fairly
conservative states, Singer asserts that Americans
in general would support a ban on such intensive confinement.
He concludes that in the U.S., “…agribusiness
is able to put tens of millions of dollars into the
pockets of congressional representatives seeking re-election.
The animal welfare movement, despite broad public
support, has been unable to compete in the arena of
political lobbying and campaign donations.”
However, “[T]he animal-protection movement
has amped up its political engagement in recent years,”
states Wayne Pacelle, CEO of The Humane Society of
the U.S. (HSUS), in a Denver Post column. He spells
out the political clout of the movement, and notes
that “[I]n the last decade Americans have…
pass[ed] 19 statewide measures…outlaw[ing] such
abhorrent practices as cockfighting…horse slaughter…and
confinement of animals in crates on factory farms.
Few other causes have a record of such success…[d]espite
the enormous financial advantages of animal-use industries
and their trade groups.” Among the efforts in
the upcoming congressional session will be “urg[ing]
lawmakers to make staged animal fighting a federal
felony” and “outlaw[ing] the slaughter
of 100,000 healthy American horses as delicacies for
foreign restaurants,” Pacelle promises.
“The major activist groups have more than $300
million in tax-exempt funds ready to attack animal
agriculture. Funds continue to grow, and you can expect
more action in 2007,” said Kay Johnson of the
Animal Agriculture Alliance at the recent American
Farm Bureau annual meeting. She noted that there are
25 states that allow ballot initiatives, and she expects
California and Colorado will be the next ones in which
activists attempt farmed animal initiatives. Johnson
also pointed out that there are now 90 law schools
that offer animal law courses, which she says is the
fastest-growing program. “Why would [animal
advocates] slow down?” she asks, “They
are succeeding.”
“Rather than defending a status quo that most
Americans consider indefensible, Iowa’s pork
industry can assume a leadership role in the movement
to end the most egregious factory farming practices
by moving away from gestation crate confinement,”
states Paul Shapiro, director of HSUS’s Factory
Farming Campaign, in a Globe Gazette opinion piece.
It’s still typical in Iowa, which leads the
nation in pig production, for female pigs used for
breeding purposes to be confined “in two-foot-wide
gestation crates that are so restrictive they can’t
even turn around for months on end.” Quoting
farmed animal authority Dr. Temple Grandin (“Gestation
crates for pigs are a real problem... Basically, you’re
asking a sow to live in an airline seat ... I think
it’s something that needs to be phased out.”)
Shapiro points out that, in addition to animal scientists,
“Prominent figures on both sides of the political
aisle agree that the use of gestation crates is deplorable.”
TETHERED BY THE WALLET
The Guardian (U.K.), Peter Singer, Jan. 3, 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1981590,00.html
ANIMAL PROTECTION A JUST CAUSE
Denver Post, Wayne Pacelle, Jan. 6, 2007
http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_4953112
ACTIVISTS ATTACK ANIMAL AGRICULTURE
American Farm Bureau, Jan. 7, 2007
http://tinyurl.com/ylw6ny
PORK INDUSTRY SHOULD PHASE OUT GESTATION CRATES
Globe Gazette, Opinion, Paul Shapiro, Jan. 10, 2007
http://tinyurl.com/uww6g
2.
GROUP THREATENS LAWSUITS TO PROTECT BAY
PennFuture, a Pennsylvania environmental
group, filed notice on January 8th of its intention
to sue five Lancaster County pig and chicken "factory
farms" as part of a campaign to keep manure pollution
out of the Chesapeake Bay [the largest estuary in
the U.S.]. The five are among up to 250 farmed animal
operations in the state that have failed to get water
pollution control permits required by federal and
state laws (see also: http://tinyurl.com/y5lnt5
). About 40% of the nitrogen pollution that causes
low-oxygen "dead zones" in the bay comes
from agricultural pollution, about half of which is
from manure, according to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.
The Baltimore Sun relates: “One
of the farmers who received a legal notice, Gary Lefever
of Marietta, Pa., stood yesterday over the bodies
of two dead sows sprawled in the doorway of a huge
metal shed holding 900 pigs. Pungent fumes wafted
from a scum-covered, 50-yard-long pond of hog excrement,
which rippled near a second building housing about
600 pigs. ‘It's definitely too much paperwork,’
said Lefever, 59, of the permitting requirements.”
He and another recipient face possible fines for operating
for almost 5 years without required permits. The other
three recipients probably should have applied for
water pollution permits under federal standards that
went into effect last April. The permits require keeping
fertilizer away from streams and allow state inspectors
to examine waste lagoons to make sure they won't leak.
If the five businesses apply for permits within 60
days, PennFuture will drop its threat to sue them
and will instead contact the next ones on its list
of 250 possible violators.
POLLUTION LAWSUITS THREATENED
The Baltimore Sun, Tom Pelton, January 9, 2007
http://tinyurl.com/schde
3.
WINTER STORMS MAY CLAIM 40,000 COLORADO CATTLE
The third snowstorm in three weeks fell
January 5th on southeast Colorado, where 3,500 to15,000
cattle are estimated to have died from exposure, dehydration,
and hunger. A Dec. 28th blizzard followed a Dec. 20th
storm, dumping 3 feet of snow and leaving snowdrifts
up to 15-feet high, suffocating some animals and separating
others from food and water. Prior to the storm, drought
had left little grass for them to eat. The 130,000
cattle in area feedlots could fare worse than those
on range, with many having come from warmer regions
and not yet acclimating to the Colorado weather. However,
surviving range cattle may yet succumb to fatal respiratory
infections brought on by stress and dehydration. Windy
conditions and the continuing cold are especially
dangerous for newborn calves.
A National Guard airlift of seven helicopters and
a plane operated for three days, dropping 70 to 80
tons of hay to stranded cattle. Guard soldiers continued
assisting afterward with hay deliveries on the ground.
A single cow can eat 25 to 30 pounds of hay each day,
and in good conditions cattle can survive 5 to 10
days without food or water. Of the estimated 340,000
cattle in the seven counties hardest-hit by the storms,
Colorado’s Agriculture Commissioner predicts
at least 40,000 will die from them. A 1997 storm killed
30,000 farmed animals in the same region. An accurate
count won't be possible until enough snow melts to
allow access to pastures. Farmers have also reported
losing thousands of pigs to collapsed building.
Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, and New Mexico all requested
federal aid due to winter conditions. Parts of Oklahoma
and Texas have also been affected. Mike Fitzgerald
with Nebraska Cattlemen said that the problem there
wasn’t with stranded cattle but with conditions
making it very difficult for producers to get to their
cattle with feed and water. "One guy told me
the (corn) stalks his cattle were on was like a frozen
lake," Fitzgerald said. The cattle had a hard
time standing up, the cattleman had a hard time standing
up, and the ice made the stalks inaccessible to the
cattle, he explained.
Disposal of the dead animals also poses
problems (see: http://tinyurl.com/vpqr7
). Discussions are planned to determine how the Colorado
cattle industry can better prepare in the future so
rescue efforts can be more timely and effective.
COLORADO CATTLE DIE BY THOUSANDS
Associated Press; Jon Sarche with Judith Kohler &
Kim Nguyen, Jan. 10, 2007
http://www.theworldlink.com/articles/2007/01/09/news/news13010907.txt
THIRD STORM IN THREE WEEKS BRINGS MORE SNOW TO WINTER-WEARY
COLORADO
The Associated Press, Jan. 5. 2007
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/stormcenter/2007-01-05-colorado-snowstorm_x.htm?POE=NEWISVA
HAY LIFT AIMS TO SAVE SNOWBOUND CATTLE
The Associated Press, Jan. 2, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16389942/
COLORADO BLIZZARD COULD TOP '97 STORM'S LIVESTOCK
DEATH TOLL, STATE AG COMMISSIONER SAYS
Meating Place, Tom Johnston, Jan. 4, 2007
http://www.meatingplace.com/MembersOnly/webNews/details.aspx?item=17093
STRANDED BY SNOW, CATTLE GET HELP FROM MILITARY
The Associated Press, Jan. 4, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16467237/
EXPERT: CATTLE FACE PROBLEMS BEYOND BLIZZARDS
The Pueblo Chieftain, Gayle Perez, January 11, 2007
http://www.chieftain.com/metro/1168502328/5
PLAINS BLIZZARDS HAMMER PRODUCERS
BEEF Cow-Calf Weekly, Burt Rutherford, Jan. 5, 2007
http://enews.prismb2b.com/enews/beef/cowcalf_weekly/current#a070105
KANSAS REQUESTS U.S. BLIZZARD RELIEF; COLO. BRACES
FOR MORE BAD WEATHER
Meating Place, Tom Johnston, Jan. 5, 2007
http://www.meatingplace.com/MembersOnly/webNews/details.aspx?item=17100
COLORADO CATTLE DEATH COUNT LEVELS OFF, COSTS PILE
UP AFTER BLIZZARD
Meating Place, Tom Johnston, Jan. 10, 2007
http://www.meatingplace.com/MembersOnly/webNews/details.aspx?item=17137
4.
FOREIGN DISASTERS
At least 30,000 sheep (and an untold
numbers of cattle) perished from drowning or exposure
when a “once-in-a-generation” storm struck
the coastal town of Esperance, in western Australia,
in early January. The region has been declared a natural
disaster area, making government support available
to farmers. In a 1999 event there, some 12,000 animals
were killed.
Five hundred bulls imported from Australia died in
isolation pens in Israel in late 2006, many apparently
from respiratory diseases. According to the animal
rights group Let Animals Live (LAL), most of the bulls
died due to poor conditions in the pens and from serious
injuries they suffered while being transported from
truck to truck. LAL is demanding the end of all cattle
imports from Australia.
WA SHEEP LOSSES REACH 30,000 AFTER STORM
Rural News, Jan. 9, 2007
http://www.abc.net.au:80/rural/news/content/2006/s1823719.htm
ESPERANCE DECLARED NATURAL DISASTER ZONE
WA Business News, January 9, 2007
http://www.wabusinessnews.com.au/en-story.php?/1/47579/Esperance-declared-natural-disaster-zone
BAD ODORS PROMPT JORDANIAN COMPLAINT
y net news, Meir Ochayon, Dec. 31, 2006
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3346759,00.html
5.
UPCOMING EVENTS
PROACTIVE APPROACHES TO CONTROVERSIAL
WELFARE AND ETHICAL CONCERNS IN POULTRY SCIENCE:
Bioethics Symposium of the International Poultry Scientific
Forum, Jan. 23rd. Sponsored by the USDA and the Southern
Poultry Science Society, topics for the 3 & ½
hour symposium include: “Welfare as an Ethical
Issue: Are Blind Chickens the Answer?”; “Ethical
Issues Affecting Poultry, and Alternative Solutions”;
and “Electric, Gas or Religious Slaughter Alternatives.”
See (pdf file): http://tinyurl.com/yhezcm
The forum will be conducted in conjunction with the
3-day International Poultry Expo which is to be held
at the World Congress Center in Atlanta, Ga.:
http://www.internationalpoultryexposition.com
6th ANNUAL COMPASSION FOR ANIMALS
ACTION SYMPOSIUM
Presented by VegEvents, January 26 - 28 at the Regal
Palms Resort in Davenport, Florida (around 30 miles
SW of downtown Orlando). “Come to Orlando, raise
your awareness of compassionate living and take it
back to your community. You Can Make a Difference!”
Among the presenters will be Lorri Bauston (Animal
Acres), Karen Davis (United Poultry Concerns), George
Eisman, RD (vegetarian nutrition), Michael Greger,
M.D. (Humane Society of the U.S.), Dawn Moncrief (Farm
Animal Reform Movement), and Paul Shapiro (HSUS).
See: http://www.vegevents.net/events.htm
INADMISSIBLE COMPARISONS:
United Poultry Concerns’ 7th Annual Conference,
co-hosted by the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund
and Lantern Books, to be held at the NYU Law School
in New York City, March 24-25. “Inadmissible
Comparisons asks: Can the Holocaust be compared with
African American slavery or the Native American genocide?
Can any of these experiences be related to those of
animals on today’s factory farms?…This
conference explores why such comparisons are offered
and asks whether they should or should not be made.
It examines the rhetoric and images of those comparisons
and the agendas that might lie behind them, while
interrogating the need for comparative thinking in
the first place.” See: http://tinyurl.com/y2jvvx
FARM SANCTUARY’S 6TH ANNUAL
FARM ANIMAL FORUM: Designed to raise awareness
about current farmed animal issues and campaigns,
this one-day conference offers educational opportunities
for activists of all experience levels. Activities
will include: presentations by noted animal protection
speakers, activist training workshops and educational
seminars, merchandise and literature exhibits, and
hands-on activism and volunteer opportunities. To
be held April 29th at the National Constitution Center
in Philadelphia. See: http://farmsanctuary.org/farmanimalforum/2007/
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