Farm Animal Voice - Issue 183

FARM ANIMAL

voice

YOUR MAGAZINE FROM COMPASSION IN WORLD FARMING

Issue 183 – Winter 2011

A FILTHY BUSINESS Europe should stop paying the price for factory farming GOOD DAIRY What our awards mean for farm animal welfare FESTIVE FUNDRAISING Ideas to keep Christmas compassionate

ISSUE 183

farm animal voice contents UPDATE

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4 News Animal welfare headlines from around the world

INSIGHT 8 Good Dairies Improving the lives of thousands of cows and calves

INSPIRATION 11 A year’s worth of impact Compassion’s annual review highlights the difference we are making together 18 Interview Graham Harvey, scriptwriter for The Archers, talks to Philip Lymbery about farming today

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21 Remembering Compassion Richard Briers explains why commitment to Compassion is so important

ACTION 6 Filthy Business Our new, hardhitting political campaign to end factory farming

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15 Gobbledygook Why the government can’t give a straight answer 16 Live Export Signs of progress and a Big Bus Challenge 22 Compassionate ideas for Christmas Front cover photograph © iStock

Editor Richard Brooks Production manager Sarah Bryan Design Neo – weareneo.com Farm Animal Voice Compassion in World Farming, River Court, Mill Lane, Godalming, Surrey GU7 1EZ, UK Enquiries Tel +44 (0) 1483 521 953 (lines are manned Monday to Friday, 9am – 5pm) Email supporters@ciwf.org Compassion in World Farming is a registered charity (England), registered number 1095050.

Our Patrons Bishop John Baker, Alexandra Bastedo, Jilly Cooper OBE, Princess Alia Al Hussein of Jordan, Penelope Keith OBE, Bruce Kent, Joanna Lumley OBE, Sir Peter O’Sullevan CBE, Jonathon Porritt CBE, Sir Crispin Tickell GCMG KCVO

the beginning of the end for the battery cage

by PhiliP lymbery, ceo

I

’m watching the latest addition to our family; a small, featherless hen, fresh from her battery cage. Her entire life has been spent crammed with others into a cage where she could not even stretch her wings, let alone walk, flap, scratch at the ground. In short, she was denied being able to do the things that make life worth living for a hen.

Just hours away from that wretched existence and her weakened body responds to the warmth of the sun. She walks the length and breadth of our garden. She scratches at the ground and pecks inquisitively at a world previously denied her.

But so many more hens will be living lives of freedom.

The rise of keeping hens free range, particularly in the UK, has been obvious.

And then there is the corporate trend. Some of the world’s biggest companies have recently decided to go cage-free on their eggs. McDonald’s in Europe and Sainsbury’s to name but two. They have harnessed the food quality benefits of going cage-free; and responded to their customers’ aspirations for a better world on their plate. Millions of hens are living cage-free lives already as a result.

I was recently asked how I feel about the European ban on barren battery cages, due to come into force on New Year’s Day 2012. Put simply, it is perhaps the most monumental victory in the history of animal welfare. It is a huge success story won by the persistence of so many.

Back at home, our new hen nestles into a bed of straw.

It’s the first time she has ever made a nest. She lays an egg. I can see the difference that has been made to the life of this one sensitive creature. How wondrous then that, from 1st January next year, the tireless efforts of compassionate people everywhere will have touched the lives of so many millions more.

After all, it takes a lot to get something banned, especially when that something dominates an entire industry.

Churning out a staple product – eggs – for much of Europe. Yet, we did it. By waving banners, writing letters, buying better eggs. By coming together.

I cannot thank you enough; for being part of this campaign, for your support. Together, we are making a difference. There is still much more to do.

I remember the day the agreement was reached; in June 1999. Animal campaigners throughout Europe had gathered in Luxembourg. We eagerly awaited the outcome of EU negotiations on the future of cages. I will never forget the overwhelming sense of elation at hearing that barren cages would be banned! Standing on the steps of the European Council building, nervously hanging on to every word, as the UK Minister explained what had been agreed.

An enduring feeling of privilege at being there on the day that history was made. An end in sight to the nightmare of the battery. The beginning of a better way.

PS: Thank you to you all for believing in Compassion and a future without factory farming. Happy Christmas and we’re looking forward to a Happy New Year for millions more animals!

It’s not a perfect law. Sadly, they rarely are. There was the painfully long “phase in’” period of 12 years for example.

And then there was the clause that will allow so-called ‘enriched’ cages; bigger cages with a perch and stuff.

My personal blog is available at: acompassionateworld.org

This issue of Farm Animal Voice is dedicated to Ylana Hayward, one of the founding trustees of Compassion in 1967. She gave her total support to Peter Roberts’ vision over 26 years as a trustee, and this year, before her passing just after her 95th birthday, she recorded her admiration for Compassion’s ground-breaking Beyond Factory Farming campaign. Joyce D’Silva, Compassion's Ambassador, describes her as ‘an inspiration, a guide, a friend’.

Congratulations to the 1st prize winner of our autumn raffle, Mr Henry Wright, who wins £2,000.

Henry was born in 1931 and has been a supporter of Compassion since 1990. He is a regular giver and always takes part in our raffles. He has also helped with street collections in the past and sends off our petition postcards. Thank you for everything you do for farm animals Henry!

2nd prize £1000 – Miss Natalie Stow 3rd prize £400 – Mr Roger Dean 4th prize £100 – Francis Lederman

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UPDATE

hUgh's temPorary meat-free diet Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is making a conscious effort to cut right down on his meat and fish consumption.

Hugh recognises that not only are vegetables better for our health than meat, but they also cause less damage to the planet.

comPassion Wins again Another award for Compassion in World Farming! Our Annual Review 2009/2010 recently won a Third Sector Excellence Award. Third Sector is the UK’s leading publication for everyone who needs to know what’s going on in the voluntary and not-for-profit sector.

The judges felt Compassion’s Annual Review was worthy of the award as it demonstrated the impact we are making on the lives of millions of farm animals. They were impressed by the way we clearly laid out our goals and achievements for the year.

COMPASSION NETHERLANDS CAMPAIGNS FOR DUTCH PIGS Barren conditions are one of the many factors that contribute to animal suffering in factory farming. Compassion in World Farming’s Netherlands office has launched a public campaign to encourage Dutch pig farmers to give their animals straw and stop routine tail docking without anaesthetic.

pig farms in several EU nations in 2008 revealed that tail docking and lack a of straw are widespread.

Under the EU Pigs Directive, farmers are obliged to give their pigs “manipulable material” i.e. straw, for them to forage in and routine tail docking is not permitted. Shockingly, a major Compassion investigation into

The campaign tour around the Netherlands succeeded in raising awareness about intensive pig farming. Hundreds took part by posing for a photo, all of which will be handed over to the EU Agriculture Minister.

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In the Netherlands, 88% of farms we visited had little or no manipulable material for the pigs and every one of them docked the animals’ tails.

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He says: “We eat too much meat in the west – too much for our own health and far too much for the welfare of the many millions of animals we raise for food.

I believe that factory farming is plain wrong – environmentally and ethically.

So it saddens me to say that, despite some recent significant gains in the UK on poultry and pork welfare, the problems associated with the industrial production of meat are, globally speaking, as bad as ever.

Undeniably, we are faced with the very challenging question: how can we eat really well every day without contributing to global warming, the suffering of animals or the pillaging of our precious marine resources?

There is one, unequivocal answer: to eat more vegetables.”

Hugh’s latest book, River Cottage Veg Every Day! is available in bookstores now, priced £25.

UPDATE

IRONY AT ITS BEST Compassion feels the adverts to be untrue and misleading. So we have lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). At the time of going to print, the complaint was being considered.

Hundreds of ‘Pork Not Porkies’ posters plastered across the UK claim that pork stamped with a Red Tractor logo is ‘high welfare’ pork. Having considered the Red Tractor standards, which can be found on their website,

The Red Tractor’s standards do not represent “high welfare” but can in fact allow conditions of deprivation in the more intensive units. Anyone can make a complaint to the ASA by calling 020 7492 2222 or visiting www.asa.org.uk

COWS BELONG IN FIELDS – LATEST DEVELOPMENTS GOOD NEWS Earlier this year, Cwrt Malle Farm in Carmarthenshire applied for retrospective planning permission for a mega-dairy housing 1,800 cows. In September, following objections from local residents and organisations including Compassion, this application was withdrawn.

Whilst this is good news, we remain tentative as we have reason to fear that the application will at some point be re-submitted. We will remain vigilant and be ready to act if and when this happens.

A BACKWARD STEP Unfortunately, in neighbouring Welsh county, Powys, councillors indicated that they are “minded to approve” an application to extend an existing farm to 1,000 cows. The council’s planning committee, which met on Tuesday 1st November, went against the recommendation of its own planning officer, who recommended refusal, saying the development “fundamentally conflicts” with Powys’ Unitary Development Plan Policy.

THE TRUE COSTS OF FACTORY FARMING There is a widespread assumption that farming animals to higher standards of animal welfare invariably leads to a substantial increase in farm-level production costs. However, Peter Stevenson, our Chief Policy Advisor, has carried out extensive research from recent studies, and has found that often this isn’t the case. In his report, Reviewing the costs: The economics of moving to higher welfare farming, Peter found that a free-range egg costs just 2p more to produce than a battery egg and housing sows in groups rather than stalls adds just 2p to the cost of producing 1kg of pork.

In better welfare systems, animals tend to be healthier, therefore lowering the cost of veterinary bills and reducing mortality rates. Of course, it’s not just the animals who benefit from higher welfare systems; Peter’s report also highlights the “costs” of factory farming to the environment, examining a range of studies that quantify the negative externalities of industrial livestock production. If all the damaging costs to society of industrial farming were included in retail prices, factoryfarmed produce would be far more expensive than at present.

You can download a copy of this report from ciwf.org/economicsreport

The resultant intensive dairy unit at Lower Leighton Farm would see its herd extended to around nine times the size of the UK average and the animals kept indoors year round, with limited access to grazing only for those cows not lactating or “performing” due to illness.

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ACTION

ock and We want to arouse sh s many people a m o fr n o ti a n m e d n o c er the support d a ro b e h T . le ib ss o p as ater will be re g e th , n ig a p m a c r u for o nk you for a h T . ss e c c su f o e c n a its ch your support.

ACTION

You may have already caught sight of our new campaign Filthy Business.

Compassion’s aim with this campaign is to change the landscape of European agriculture away from factory farming towards humane and sustainable farming. Head of Public Affairs, Michèle Danan explains how.

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ompassion’s new Filthy Business campaign is of huge significance in our fight against factory farming, as it seeks to pile on pressure at exactly the points where the key decisions about EU spending policy are made. Your support for this work will be crucial in the coming weeks, months and years (yes, we’re in it for the long haul). Here’s how we plan to achieve what’s fair and right for farm animals and generate better support for ‘good’ farmers across Europe.

Every year, the powers that be in the European Union, including our own UK MEPs and Agriculture Minister, distribute over £45 billion (around €55 billion) of taxpayers' money to farmers in the UK and the EU. This is done under the Common Agricultural Policy, or CAP. They give this money on the basis that farmers provide us with food (which is evidently an important job) but also on the basis that farmers contribute more than just food to us. They are reimbursed for their contribution to other things that people care about such as the rural landscape and its biodiversity, job creation in rural areas, the protection and conservation of agricultural land and in theory, animal welfare.

TAKE ACTION Please send the enclosed postcard to the next President of the EU Agriculture Council.

Ms Mette Gjerskov will be responsible for leading important discussions over the future distribution of billions of Euros of taxpayers’ money.

We need to ensure that she knows that Europe’s citizens want this money to go towards more sustainable, humane forms of farming.

How can they be doing enough when more than 80% of farm animals in the EU are factory farmed every year?

Factory farming harms the environment, damages rural life and of course causes immense suffering to animals while making huge profits for the giant players in this Filthy Business.

Only public pressure can call these policy makers to account. They imagine that the public doesn’t really understand how taxes are being spent, or follow the details of agricultural policy, but our Filthy Business campaign aims to change that.

EU policymakers claim that they aim to spend this money with all of these ‘other’ benefits in mind – but they exaggerate.

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COMPASSION’S AIM IS TO IMPROVE THE LIVES OF DAIRY COWS AND CALVES. OUR GOOD DAIRY AWARD CELEBRATES THOSE COMPANIES THAT ARE TAKING STEPS TO IMPROVE DAIRY COW AND CALF WELFARE WITHIN THEIR SUPPLY CHAINS.

IANCSTI IGOHNT

GOOD DAIRIES LEADING THE WAY Compassion visits two Good Dairy Award winners to find out how they are making a difference to thousands of lives.

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ver the last decade, the dairy industry has undergone significant change. Milk is becoming an ever cheaper commodity, with lower profits for farmers at a time when the cost of production is rising. As a result, the number of dairy farms in the UK has fallen but the average farm size has increased.

Many farmers are being drawn towards more intensive, indoor dairy farming in order to survive.

In addition, many male dairy calves – often considered a waste product as they cannot produce milk and are deemed unsuitable for beef production – are either shot shortly after birth or exported and reared for veal, often in intensive systems that are illegal in the UK.

Compassion estimates that 80,800 dairy cows and calves are set to benefit each year as a result of OMSCo's actions.

Compassion’s aim is to improve the lives of dairy cows and calves. Our Good Dairy Award celebrates those companies that are taking steps to improve dairy cow and calf welfare within their supply chains.

Through the Good Dairy Award we aim to ensure that more dairy cows have access to good quality pasture grazing as a significant part of their diet. Winning companies must also demonstrate a commitment to monitoring and improving key welfare issues such as lameness, culling rate, mastitis and cow condition. They should also be rearing all their calves in high welfare systems: raised in social groups with adequate bedding and fed a diet consisting an appropriate amount of fibre.

ImProvING orGANIC WELfArE sTANDArDs One of our 2011 Good Dairy Award winners, OMSCo (the Organic Milk Suppliers Cooperative) is raising the bar in terms of higher welfare across its 450 dairy farms.

OMSCo is the largest and longest established UK organic milk supplier.

OMSCo provides 70% of all organic milk sold in the UK. OMSCo is independently managing a number of welfare and sustainability projects and is now raising its standards even higher as a Good Dairy Award winner. It already has an active grazing policy and has set targets for maximising pasture access on all its farms. The organic standards state that a minimum of 60% of a herd's diet is forage-based and OMSCo is taking steps to ensure that at least 90% of all feed requirements come from the home farm and/or linked farms. In addition to animal welfare, OMSCo believes that the benefits of grazing also include healthier milk that is higher in Omega 3.

All OMSCo’s dairy calves receive vital colostrum from their mothers and are fed an appropriate diet with roughage to ensure their digestive systems are properly developed. They are all reared in groups to allow social interaction and are subject to

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INSIGHT

a PartnershiP that valUes the life of the dairy calf

only short transport times. Under Soil Association standards, the export of live calves is not permitted and all OMSCo’s members are complying with these standards.

OMSCo actively monitors the welfare outcomes of its cows and has evidence of much lower levels of lameness than conventional, non-organic farms. As this work continues, OMSCo will move to offering incentive payments to its farmers for achieving improvements in lameness rates in the future.

“We see the Good Dairy Award as a key opportunity to communicate the benefits of organic dairy production systems which have high health and animal welfare that are in tune with the demands of consumers and we look forward to working with Compassion to continuously improve outcomes in this area.”

ACTION Compassion’s ongoing work with food companies is only possible because of our supporters.

To learn more about the impact of this work, visit: ciwf.org.uk/yourfood

Huw Bowles, Corporate Affairs and Finance Director, OMSCo.

One of our Good Calf Commendation winners, the Brookfield Farm brand, is a joint venture between DB Foods (manufacturer) and Tarrant Valley Livestock (producer). Together, they have made a significant commitment to farming sustainably by buying in unwanted dairy calves from local farms and raising them for veal and beef. By working in partnership, they have developed an economic and sustainable production system where they can share the costs and profits of rearing their calves in higher welfare systems.

“Winning the Good Calf Commendation is something we are immensely proud of and is testament to the level of work and investment behind our high-welfare veal and beef-rearing operation. Recognition from Compassion is very important to us and is invaluable in helping our model to grow and expand.”

David Tory, Tarrant Valley Livestock, a Brookfield Farm producer.

yoUr sUPPort Will helP safegUard and imProve not only the Wellbeing of the UK dairy herd, bUt Will also WorK to imPact UPon the lives of 23 million dairy coWs across the eU. THANK YOU.

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annUal revieW 2010/11 a year of alliance & insPiring Progress

STRENGTH

IN NUMBERS

T

oday, factory farming is a global issue. The extent of the suffering it causes goes beyond farm animal welfare. The damage it is causing in terms of climate change, water scarcity and food security is unsustainable and is of great concern to health experts and scientists worldwide.

Compassion’s priority is to end farm animal suffering. To achieve our vision, we need to reach out and expose the true cost of factory farming for animals, people and the planet. We must inspire those working to protect our environment, alleviate poverty and improve human health.

Our fight is very much their fight too.

United, our collective voices will be too powerful to ignore.

“Our vision is of a humane and sustainable way of producing food that looks after the welfare of the animals whilst ensuring that everyone can be fed well and fairly, not just in the UK, but across the world.”

Philip Lymbery, Chief Executive, Compassion in World Farming

Photo © Getty Images

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annUal revieW 2010/11 a year of alliance & insPiring Progress DEFENDING EUROPE’S CHICKENS

a further 190.8 million hens & chickens are set to benefit each year because of the pledges made by our award winners

The Europe-wide barren battery cage ban that Compassion helped secure in 1999 is due to come into force in 2012. Europe’s hens need Compassion to help make sure the ban comes into effect on time and in full.

farm animal welfare is at the heart of all compassion does. our mission is to put it at the heart of the food industry, and high on the agenda of consumers and politicians. but all that we achieve would not be possible without the generosity of our supporters.

We would like to say a huge thank you to you all for believing in compassion and a future without factory farming.

To read the full Annual Review, please download your free copy from ciwf.org/annualreview or call us on 01483 521 953 (Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm).

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Defend The Big Move More than 75,000 emails were sent

by Compassion supporters urging European MPs, MEPs and Ministers not to delay the ban on the barren battery cage.

Following the EU-wide public display of support, the governments in the UK, Italy and Spain all took action to protect laying hens – and Poland finally abandoned its plans to apply for a formal delay to the ban.

Good Egg Awards In the UK, 1 in 3 local authorities (57) are now Good Egg Award winners, and they are helping more than 21,000 hens out of cages each year.

LAW AND ENFORCEMENT

more than 200 million pigs would endure less suffering if eU laws were abided by

More than 200 million pigs would endure less suffering if all EU farmers simply abided by current EU laws.

Our investigations and a recent report by the European Food Safety Authority reveal that laws to protect pigs are not being properly enforced.

Stop Cruel Mutilations 7,997 Compassion supporters sent our campaign postcard to the EU president, urging the Commission to do all it can to achieve better enforcement of existing welfare laws across Europe.

Good Pig Awards Compassion’s Leadership in Pig Welfare Awards showcased farmers who are pioneering higher welfare pig farming.

We will roll out our Good Pig Award scheme across European food companies in 2012.

Good Chicken Awards We launched the Good Chicken Awards in July 2010. The pledges of the UK and European winners in the first year are set to benefit over 184 million chickens each year.

From January 2012, Compassion will continue campaigning to ensure that the ban on barren battery cages is enforced properly.

By engaging with the top 150 food companies in the EU, Compassion aims to improve the lives of one billion chickens by March 2014.

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We will encourage leading food companies to raise their standards on pig welfare.

Thanks to Compassion, sow stalls have been banned in the UK since 1999, and their use will be restricted across the EU in 2013.

But this legislation is still under threat. We will continue working to ensure there is no delay and the law is enforced properly.

annUal revieW 2010/11 a year of alliance & insPiring Progress COWS BELONG IN FIELDS

THE RECURRING NIGHTMARE

BEYOND FACTORY FARMING

16,000 objections are lodged against nocton dairies’ mega-dairy planning application

around 6 million animals are transported long distances across europe every year

One third of the world’s grain harvest is fed to livestock

Dairy farming is rapidly moving towards a more intensive system known as ‘zero grazing’. Larger US-style ‘mega-dairies’, with sheds or barns that can house thousands of cows, now threaten to invade the UK and spread throughout Europe.

Each year, millions of live farm animals around the world are transported thousands of miles for slaughter, or to places where they will be fattened for slaughter. This trade is a global problem.

Industrial livestock production depends on high inputs of natural resources – energy, water and land. One third of the world’s grain harvest is fed to farm animals. Livestock production also contributes around 18% of global man-made greenhouse gas emissions.

Stop Live Exports In early 2011, investigators trucks of EXPORTS filmed sheep and lambs travelling from Romania to Greece.

They witnessed serious overcrowding in extremely hot conditions, filthy bedding and injured animals being forced onto trucks with metal rods and a journey log that falsely claimed to have made the stop that was required by law.

STOP

LIVE

Cows Belong in Fields We launched a nationwide campaign to raise public awareness of why ‘Cows Belong in Fields’.

Nocton Dairies withdrew its application to build the UK’s first mega-dairy farm in February 2011.

Good Dairy Awards Together, we are working with dairy farmers, retailers and producers to provide a strategic vision for humane and sustainable, pasturebased dairy farming in the UK. We are also rolling out our new Good Dairy Awards to encourage leading food companies to commit to higher welfare dairy farming.

Our work with NGOs, farmers and food companies will help safeguard and improve not only the wellbeing of the UK dairy herd, but will also impact the lives of all 23 million dairy cows across the EU.

Compassion applauded Thanet District Council for its determination to stop live animal exports from Ramsgate in the UK. Its leadership is showing there is the political will to challenge this inhumane trade.

For every broken law we expose, we make a formal complaint to the country responsible and to the European Commission.

We will continue gathering evidence to influence the EU to take real steps to enforce existing laws and achieve an 8-hour limit on journey times for animals.

We will continue to urge Britain’s farmers to stop exporting live animals, whilst working with the food industry to develop sustainable supply chains for home-produced animals.

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With our global population projected to rise to 9.1 billion by 2050, Compassion continued to speak up in the global debate on finding humane, sustainable ways to feed the world more efficiently and fairly.

A report by the British Heart Foundation estimated that 45,000 lives could be saved if people in Britain ate less meat. Its findings were based on the different diets described in Compassion’s Eating the Planet report, which was produced in partnership with Friends of the Earth in 2009.

Scientists agreed that the routine use of antibiotics in intensive farming is weakening the power of human medicine against deadly bacteria such as MRSA. Factory farming also throws up serious disease and public health concerns.

Compassion will continue its research into the links between factory farming, water use, climate change, disease, antibiotic resistance and environmental damage.

We will continue lobbying the European Commission to favour higher welfare farming when reviewing how agricultural subsidies are distributed.

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ACTION

Join the camPaign for

fairer food every year, millions of animals worldwide are being forced to grow faster and bigger than nature intended. the suffering caused by overfeeding, selective breeding and having no room to move is horrific.

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duck raised in a cage to produce foie gras has no means of escape.

Only its long neck is left poking through the bars. This makes it easy to grab its head, shove a pipe down its throat, and pump almost a pound of food into its stomach in just three seconds.

Eventually, the duck’s liver becomes so fatty it swells up to 10 times its natural size. Perfect for foie gras. Never mind that the poor animal’s lungs are squashed, making it difficult to breathe.

According to a European Council Directive, “No animal shall be provided with food or liquid in a manner which may cause suffering or injury.” Yet around one million birds die during this cruel process each year.

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Next time you find cruel food on a restaurant menu, why not give the manager one of our Fairer Food cards to help persuade them to change their food buying policies? You can also leave a ‘thank you’ card for any restaurant, pub or café that uses higher welfare ingredients already.

If you haven’t already received your Fairer Food cards, call us on 01483 521 953 (9am5pm, Mon-Fri), or email supporters@ciwf.org to request your cards today. Together, we can take inhumane ‘delicacies’ like foie gras off the menu.

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PUshed beyond the natUral limit

It’s not only ducks who are suffering.

As farmers are put under pressure to produce more food more quickly, they are turning to selective breeding. The result is animals pushed beyond their natural limit. From pigs whose hearts and legs give way as they struggle with their unnatural growth rate; to exhausted cows, producing up to 10 times more milk than would be needed to feed a calf.

We must persuade more retailers and restaurants to stop selling food produced in this way.

ACTION

it’s time for

some straight talKing Carl Cawthorne reports on compassion’s work to expose the government’s plan for ‘sustainable intensification’ for what it really is, gobbledygook!

T

he British Government has said it supports the ‘sustainable intensification’ of the livestock industry and is currently considering how to best move forward research arguing the case for large-scale farming.

Meanwhile our expert team has already commissioned and set to work on our own research which will be ready for publication in 2012. Compassion aims to publish a range of new evidence that will help us expose the real truth – that ‘sustainable livestock intensification’ is simply a misguided attempt to justify more unsustainable, inhumane factory farming in the UK.

“We are currently considering how to best move forward research in the area of best practice for large scale dairying ... the Government believe that there is a place in UK agriculture for both sustainable intensification and more traditional production, so that the industry can meet varied consumer demands and be competitive on UK, EU and global markets.”

It’s time to call a halt to the unnecessary suffering inherent in factory farming and find genuinely sustainable solutions. Our new research will expose the links between the intensification of livestock farming and climate change, water and food shortages and the spread of disease.

Jim Paice, Minister for Agriculture and Food (October 2011).

In September 2011, Compassion launched an appeal to raise £86,300 to fund a research-led campaign to show the hidden, but very real cost of intensive farming in the UK.

Thank you once again for your invaluable support.

SAY NO TO FACTORY FARMS Please help us persuade MPs and the British public to say NO to more UK factory farms and YES to genuinely sustainable farming systems. Our appeal to fund vital research to counteract the government’s plans is ongoing as we still have a further £10,300 to raise. If you can help, please call 0800 999 0101 today quoting FAV183. You can also have your say by sending our online petition, which is available at ciwf.org/jimpaicepetition

Thank you everyone who has so far backed our campaign. I am pleased to report that we are well on the way to reaching our target, with almost £76,000 received from almost 3,800 donations. Just as importantly we now have over 5,000 petition signatories that our Chief Policy Advisor, Peter Stevenson, will present to Jim Paice.

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ACTION

live transPort: the fight continUes

despite the huge port protests of the 1990s and a wealth of evidence of the cruelty inherent in long distance animal transport, we still ďŹ nd ourselves campaigning in 2011. in may, our campaign found a new focus as live exporters moved their operation from dover to ramsgate.

hundreds of local residents and compassion supporters joined forces on 13 august 2011 to take part in the ramsgate rally to end the live export trade

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look out for our prize-winning adverts, expected to be on buses from January in the following UK cities: edinburgh, glasgow, liverpool, manchester, newcastle, birmingham and london! and appalling conditions. Footage from Animals Australia also showed the terrible slaughter methods that awaited animals in some Turkish slaughterhouses. You can watch both these films at ciwf.org/exportstoturkey

ramsgate rally As part of our One Way Ticket campaign, we encouraged Thanet District Council to speak out against live exports from their port at Ramsgate and, on 14th July, its councillors passed a motion to call on the government to lobby at EU level for an eight-hour limit on all live animal transport.

taKing the camPaign on the road

We closely worked with local councillor, Ian Driver, and action group Kent Against Live Exports (KALE) to increase public awareness of the trade from Ramsgate, culminating in a rally attended by more than 300 people.

As 2011 ends, a fantastic competition win has ensured that our campaign against this cruel trade will receive a big boost in 2012. In September, Compassion won the Big Bus Challenge with an anti-live exports advert, netting us £200,000-worth of free bus advertising.

Joyce D’Silva, Compassion’s Director of Public Affairs, spoke at the rally saying: “The long distance trade in animals is, sadly, a global phenomenon. But you are part of a global movement calling for an end to these horrendous journeys and part of this growing global call for all animals to be treated with compassion and respect.”

David McCullough, from Elvis Communications, the company that designed the advert (as a gift), said: “The Big Bus Challenge presented myself and creative partner Seth Jones with the perfect medium to bring to life Compassion In World Farming’s campaign against a cruel practice.”

crUelty KnoWs no borders

Like all of our work, our ongoing campaign against the long distance transportation of farm animals is only made possible because of your support.

Thank you.

Compassion has also been active investigating the live export of animals from the EU to Turkey. Our joint film investigation with European groups Eyes on Animals and Animal Welfare Foundation uncovered gruelling distances

Please write to your MPs and call on them to allow British ports to ban the cruel export trade on animal welfare grounds and alter the existing legislation so that it represents modern values.

There is also an online petition on the government's website that you can sign, calling for government action to end live exports: ciwf.org/liveexportpetition

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– live as if yoU’re going to die tomorroW –

bUt farm as if yoU’re going to live forever

❝ “For 14 years, I was The Archers’ agricultural story editor, but it’s time to get back to the real world. Modern high-input agriculture is wrecking our health, our rural communities and our planet. In my view there’s only one answer – Britain’s forgotten treasure, family mixed farms. Real farms producing real food.”

❞ ciwf.org

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INSPIRATION

Graham Harvey, author, agricultural commentator and scriptwriter for The Archers, speaks to compassion’s ceo Philip Lymbery, about the state of farming today, and how it should be.

tweaked as needed over the years. The best farm is a mixed farm in which grass and forage crops grown for ruminants are grown in rotation with crops grown for human consumption. This is a very balanced and sustainable system that mimics natural systems. It’s productive and produces healthy food.

fact versUs fiction Graham has always worked with both fiction and facts.

He deals in the imaginary as a writer for The Archers, the celebrated BBC Radio drama series. His alter-ego is as the author of an acclaimed series of books on farming in Britain: We Want Real Food (2006) and The Carbon Fields (2008). His most recent project is Pasture Promise TV, which explores different aspects of pasture farming in short documentary films. Whether it’s fact or fiction, I know from working with Graham that what he has to say is always insightful and informative.

the reality In 1972 Graham joined the publication, Farmers Weekly.

That’s when he started seeing the traditional mixed farm come under attack. In its place were animal factories.

Travelling around the country, reporting, he saw how farmers were driven by the business of farming. Graham says that he was quite disappointed that farming was like that. It was about profit and not the ideals of health and biology. This was the time when we entered the Common Market. He could see what huge changes the Common Agricultural Policy was having. Centuries of development in very efficient mixed family farms, which were in balance with nature, were replaced with specialised farms, which only survived with chemicals and intensification. Graham sums up: “This is mostly how factory farming came about.

These developments saddened me.”

the romance of farming Of the farming world, Graham says: “I’ve been fascinated with agriculture ever since I took a holiday job on a farm.

It was a mixed farm, the sort that grew both food crops for people and grass for grazing cattle. Looking back it was a great system, because the milk and meat came from animals grazing pasture and their produce contained all sorts of nutrients to protect human health. When the pasture was ploughed up for wheat or oats, the soil was so fertile it would grow sizeable crops without the need for pesticides.”

Graham continues: “It’s the sense of working with nature, an understanding of ecology, although the farmers I worked with wouldn’t have expressed it that way. They had a sense of using natural resources for the benefit of people, animals and the land.”

In the 1980s, Graham gave up full-time journalism to write scripts for The Archers. Of this decision, he says: “At least in this fictional world there were a few mixed farms left.”

Graham shares that, as an agriculture student, he had a “romantic notion of what farming was about.” He was particularly influenced by the books which were published in the 1940s and 1950s. The authors were founders of what became the organic movement: George Henderson’s book The Farming Ladder and Newman Turner’s Fertility Farming were inspirations as they saw farming as a vocation. They reminded Graham of a saying that he learned at the time: “You live as if you’re going to die tomorrow but you farm as if you’re going to live forever.” He says that these farmers looked after the land: they were custodians, but also financially successful farmers.

“I always had a feeling for animals. I always felt a sense of compassion.” Graham has a small flock of Exmoor Horn sheep on three acres of very steep unimproved grassland. He explains that it’s so steep that it has never been sprayed. He shares that his wife and he have learned so much from their eight ewes. “They enrich our lives just by being sheep. I believe most farmers want to have this kind of relationship with their animals. But they think it’s impossible. I was a vegetarian but now eat meat only from animals where I know how and where they are raised.”

his love of animals

“Consumers can stop industrialised factory farming.

But they need to understand the issues. This is what I’d like to see happen. I want to see a level of public consciousness which would make it impossible for animals to spend their lives in sheds. “

Graham believes that a key part of farming is the managing of nature. A traditional sense of farming allowed the natural system to play its role but it was

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INSIGHT

EXTENDING THE REACH OF

THE GOOD FARM ANIMAL WELFARE AWARDS Compassion has continued to spread its higher welfare message around the globe over the past few months with award ceremonies taking place in Australia, New Zealand and Paris, with the launch of the Public Sector Awards in London.

T

he Awards celebrate the fantastic work being done by leading food retailers, manufacturers, producers, food service companies and public sector organisations who are ensuring that animals reared for food are done so more humanely.

Compassion and the Royal New Zealand SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) partnered to present the inaugural Good Egg Awards in Auckland on the 30th August 2011, with 38 winners who are making it their policy to source cage-free eggs.

“More than 265 million animals are now set to benefit each year as a result of our winners’ policies.”

Robyn Kippenberger, National CEO of the Royal New Zealand SPCA said, “The awards have been a great success. It’s plain to see that there are many New Zealand businesses cottoning on to the benefits of tapping into the concerns felt by consumers about cage farming and the maltreatment of food-producing animals.”

This year’s European Awards, held at the Eiffel Tower on 20th October, were the biggest yet for Compassion. Forty leading companies and public service organisations from eight countries across Europe were awarded in three categories: Good Egg, Good Chicken and Good Dairy Award.

Katy Read, Head of Food Business at Compassion said: ”We’re delighted to see so many companies across Europe engaging with us and taking steps to improve the lives of millions of farm animals. Such a range of winners from so many countries demonstrates how important animal welfare is across the continent.”

To end 2011 on a high, the Public Sector Awards took place on 28th November in London. Winners included NHS Trusts, councils and over 25 universities across the country for their commitments to source higher welfare eggs and chicken.

The second year of the Australian Good Egg Awards took place at Parliament House in Canberra on the 23rd November in conjunction with the RSPCA-Australia, rewarding winners from the manufacturing and food service sectors.

As a result of all the good work our award winners are doing around the globe to improve animal welfare within their supply chains, more than 265 million animals are now set to benefit each year.

Compassion’s ongoing work with food companies is only possible because of our supporters. To learn more about the impact of this work, visit: ciwf.org/yourfood

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INSPIRATION

– the good legacy – compassion in World farming’s work isn’t just about tackling farm animal welfare today, our plans extend far into the future. gifts made in Wills play a huge part in our long term commitment to ending factory farming.

”My passion for animal husbandry started when I was acting in the 1970’s TV series The Good Life. Raising animals properly in a way that ensures their well being and, at the same time, respects the environment has always been the right thing to do.

“I feel the only realistic way forward is sustainable, humane farming where animals are well cared for. I’ve been a supporter for many years now because I know Compassion shares these beliefs.

“Compassion has achieved huge gains in farm animal welfare here in the UK and abroad. But I know their work cannot be funded by donations alone. They rely on gifts left to them in Wills to continue to make the strides forward to end suffering for good. I do hope you will consider supporting them in this very special way.”

If you would like a guide to writing or updating your Will, or simply an informal chat about how to leave such a gift, please telephone 01483 521 953 or email legacy@ciwf.org. Thank you.

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ACTION

merry christmas!

With christmas fast approaching, we have some great ideas to help you and your friends and family make it a compassionate one. from fundraising ideas to practical advice on what labels to look for when food shopping, we hope you have a very happy christmas! thank you again for all your amazing support during this past year.

Without you, none of our work would be possible.

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comPassionate christmas cards We hope you agree that this year’s Compassion Christmas card of a young highland calf is a fitting reminder of our successful ‘Cows Belong in Fields’ campaign that helped see off plans for the UK’s first-ever mega-dairy farm in Lincolnshire.

Each pack contains 10 cards of the same design plus envelopes. They are available to order for just £4.50, including postage and packaging. Please call us on 01483 521 953 (9am – 5pm, Monday – Friday) to order. To receive your cards before Christmas, please order before 16th December.

celebrate christm as With comPassion If you are stuck for gift ideas this Christmas, why not give a gift of Compassion? Make a do nation of £12 to Compassion in lieu of a Christmas gift, and yo ur friend or relative will receive a handwritten Christmas card from us, a certificate and a year’s subscription to our Farm Animal Voice magazine. To find out more, or to make a dona tion, please call us on 01483 521 953 (9am – 5pm, Monday – Friday).

THAT MAKE THE LABELS IONATE A COMPASS S CHRISTMA

heart g been at the at Food has lon brations, and le ce s a m st ri h of C ould be t time, we sh n e lg u d in is th are about the even more aw n and hidden food labels o s our Christma ingredients in rty platters. meals and pa

THE LABELS TO LOO K FO

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As a general rule, alw ays look for meat, dairy and egg products that say orga nic or free-range on th e label – and in the ingredients on the back of packag ing.

Free-range or a tight budget. organically reared welfare for farmed fish, The RSPCA animals will have from rearing to led a more slaughter.

Freedom natural life, free to roam Food label means that The Marine outdoors. Higher the animals have been Ste wardship welfare food accredited reared in higher-welfare Co un cil’s MSC

by The Soil Association indoor or outdoor label denotes is widely available. systems, with more that the wild caught space and enrichment RSPCA Freedom Food fish on your dish comes materials. Freedom is a higher welfare from well managed Food fish also ensures alternative if you’re on and ecologically higher standards of sustainable stocks.

BEWARE…

ce on British farmed produ The Red Tractor logo te no de rk on eggs simply and the British Lion Ma d an have been abided by minimum welfare laws of practice are met: the some additional codes e systems, e confinement and cag standards can still includ mutilations. d an s fast-growing breed high stocking densities, sured. They Farm Fresh or Farm As Beware of labels that say the animals t rds to make us think tha are simply marketing wo y not be. ma y ards when in fact, the are farmed to high stand every penny be affordable and worth Higher welfare food can g to kin difference you are ma when you think about the animals’ lives. ds and eful tips to your frien Please pass on these us ate New Year compassion family as part of your thousands to ce en fer dif a making resolutions, you’ll be of lives! Thank you.

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the Peter o’sUllevan charitable trUst christmas cards

GET IN TOUCH

Contact Supporte r Services on: Tel: 01483 521 95 3 (9am – 5pm, Mon day – Friday) Email: suppor te rs@ciwf.org Visit: ciwf.org

Every year, proceeds fro m the sale of Sir Peter O’Sullev an’s Christmas cards are sha red between six animal welfa re charities: Compassion in World Farming, The Blue Cross , The Brooke, Racing Welfare, World Horse Welfare and the Thoroughbred Rehabilita tion Centre. Each pack conta ins 10 cards with envelopes an d costs £7.50 (excl. p&p). To ord er, please call 020 8333 14 11, email agnes@red.media.uk.co m or write to: Agnes Zauner at Red Dot, 63 Rosendale Road , London, SE21 8DY.

ACTION

Please support our Filthy Business campaign and help make high welfare farming in the EU a reality.

Together we can work towards making sure all our farm animals are protected from cruelty.

THANK YOU FOR HELPING TO END FACTORY FARMING. FSC LOGO EMAIL: supporters@ciwf.org

HERE

Compassion in World Farming, River Court, Mill Lane, Godalming, Surrey GU7 1EZ, UK Tel +44 (0) 1483 521 953 Email supporters@ciwf.org Web ciwf.org Compassion in World Farming is a registered charity (England), registered number 1095050.