NEWS: A farmer in Yorkshire, UK, has killed hundreds of piglets because slaughterhouses aren’t killing adults fast enough due to worker shortages, while other reports warn that 120,000 pigs could be culled to avoid an “acute welfare disaster”.

A friend of the farmer told the BBC that he had been “destroyed by it,” despite the fact that they would normally be sent to slaughter anyway. "He had to kill perfectly healthy, viable piglets," she added, with the implication being that it wouldn’t be so bad if they were unhealthy and there wasn’t profit to be made from them.

With Brexit and the Covid pandemic being blamed for the continuing labour shortages across the meat industry, it is likely that this is neither the first nor the last case of piglet culling. Farmers are well aware that pigs are easier to kill when smaller.

Nick Allen of the British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) said because ‘processing centres’ were unable to process pigs at the usual rate, some farmers were “quietly starting to cull” animals to avoid numbers mounting up.

"The main barrier is labour, with the change in the immigration policy. We are struggling to get butchers in particular, and it limits how fast you can run the plant," said Allen. "We were offering higher wages, but with the job market at the moment, it's not worked. We do need access to some non-UK labour."

Taking the example of two major slaughter and processing centres in Hull, 80 per cent of the workforce came from Eastern Europe, according to the BMPA, most of whom will have returned following the post-Brexit change in immigration legislation.

In other words, and not unsurprisingly, no one in the UK wants to slaughter animals. In August, Surge reported on a desperate plan from the UK meat industry to exploit prisoners looking for stable work upon completing their rehabilitation. 

• UK meat industry to exploit prisoners because no one really wants to kill and slice up animals

"It's desperate. I've been producing for 26 years, and never faced the prospect of having to butcher pigs on my own farm before,” said the friend of the Yorkshire farmer who chose to remain anonymous. 

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This unprecedented killing of pigs by farmers and in such great numbers, without the necessary training and without the presence of slaughterhouse CCTV cameras, increases the likelihood of breaches in animal welfare regulations.

Farmers have warned that as many as 120,000 pigs may have to be culled on farms because of the worker shortages. Rob Mutimer, chairman of the National Pig Association (NPA), told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that the UK was facing an “acute welfare disaster” within weeks.

“We think our backlog is in the region of 100,000 to 120,000 as we stand today. And it is growing by around 12,000 a week. This is happening on pig farms all over the country, they are backed up and running out of space to keep animals.”

“The problem in the industry has got considerably worse over the last three weeks,” said Mutimer. “[A cull] involves either shooting them on the farm or taking them to an abattoir and disposing of them in a skip. These animals won’t go into the food chain, they will either be rendered or sent for incineration. It is an absolute travesty.”

The worker crisis has only added to the pressure faced by farmers, who last month were warned of a looming shortage of food-grade carbon dioxide, used to stun or kill pigs and other animals. Last week, we reported on the preposterous statement from Britain’s largest poultry producer Bernard Matthews that ‘Christmas was cancelled’ because it could not kill as many turkeys due to CO2 shortages.

• Christmas really isn't cancelled, Bernard Matthews, you just can’t kill as many turkeys this year

According to industry reports, there is evidence that British supermarkets in the lead-up to Christmas are making up for the shortfall in pig and poultry from UK suppliers by importing more from overseas producers. In response, ministers have argued that the British meat industry should invest in their workforce and improve pay and conditions.

The fact that slaughterhouses are unable to attract new workers from the UK without resorting to exploiting prisoners, despite raising wages as much as it is able to, should be evidence enough that the end of the animal exploiting industries is nigh. Demand may still be there, but with no way of meeting the supply needs, government and industry must make the responsible decision to help consumers make better, healthier, more sustainable and more compassionate food choices.

Andrew Gough is Media and Investigations Manager for Surge.

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