Devastating new footage released by the Farm Transparency Project today has again shone a light on the systemic cruelty to animals occurring in Tasmanian abattoirs.
The footage, captured by animal activists at five separate abattoirs across the state, shows indescribably awful scenes of innocent animals that struggle against, and then suffer, violent deaths.
While advertising from the meat industry tries to pretend Tasmanian farm animals live a pleasant life, the videos lay bare the reality of brutal treatment and conscious suffering.
The industry tries to present the appalling treatment of animals as a slip up here and there, but this new release of videos has made a mockery of that claim. Five abattoirs from across the state are all captured, through extensive footage, undertaking successive disturbing acts of cruelty as part of their everyday practice.
These videos show yet again the critical and urgent need for Tasmania’s animal welfare laws to be strengthened. The Greens have pushed for these reforms of years, but the Liberal and Labor parties have consistently stood in the way of improving animal welfare. Only last year we proposed multiple amendments to the Animal Welfare Act, supported by the RSPCA and animal advocates, but the major parties teamed up to block extra protections for animals.
With this extensive shocking footage now in the public domain, from five abattoirs, it’s up to the state and federal governments to act. Governments cannot sit on their hands while this sort of cruelty occurs in Tasmania.
This is a systemic issue with the industry, and animals will continue to suffer the consequences until governments step in to strengthen the law, to ensure proper oversight, and to make sure there’s real consequences for cruelty.
