Pressure group Animal Justice Project (AJP) has released 2023 footage from an undercover operation at pig abattoir, C&K Meats, supplying pork products to major supermarkets. The abattoir is stamped by RSPCA Assured. Barrister Ayesha Smart, who is also a Crown Court Judge, reviewed the footage and described it as showing “multiple and clear breaches” of statutory animal welfare regulations. AJP is now urging the shutdown and investigation of the abattoir, a call supported by the law firm Advocates for Animals, which is pressing authorities to take appropriate enforcement action.
22 August 2024
Dear News Desk,
Below is a breaking story which I hope you’ll cover. If you have any questions or would like to request an interview, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me on +44 (0) 7851 497 827.
High quality images and video are available.
Best wishes, Claire Palmer, Director, Animal Justice Project
PRESS RELEASE
22 August 2024
Shocking undercover investigation leads to calls for an immediate inquiry into the animal welfare standards at pig abattoir in Suffolk
Pigs unloaded at C&K Meats abattoir. Image Credit: Animal Justice Project
Suffolk, August 22, 2024 – Pressure group Animal Justice Project (AJP) has released 2023 footage from an undercover operation at pig abattoir, C&K Meats, supplying pork products to major supermarkets. The abattoir is stamped by RSPCA Assured. Barrister Ayesha Smart, who is also a Crown Court Judge, reviewed the footage and described it as showing “multiple and clear breaches” of statutory animal welfare regulations. AJP is now urging the shutdown and investigation of the abattoir, a call supported by the law firm Advocates for Animals, which is pressing authorities to take appropriate enforcement action.
IMAGES HERE
FILM HERE (version with no overlay here)
The AJP investigator recorded a worker at C&K Meats stating: “Nothing we do for these pigs is for their benefit. From the moment they arrive, everything is geared towards their death.”
Their undercover footage from inside C&K Meats — a facility slaughtering both intensively-reared and free-range pigs — reveals numerous apparent breaches of animal welfare laws. According to the Mirror, this abattoir, which has the capacity to kill around 1,200 to 1,400 pigs per day in CO2 gas chambers, supplies pork to brands including Jolly Hog sold at Tesco, Co-op, Aldi, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Morrisons, Asda and Lidl. Some of Tesco’s own-brand pork products are also the meat from pigs slaughtered at this abattoir.
Free-range farm businesses sending pigs to be killed at C&K Meats include BQP, Norfolk Free-Range and Wayland Farms.
Despite the presence of Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) and auditors from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), the footage shows:
Pigs struck with instruments, causing pain and distress.
Visible injuries, lameness, wounds, abnormal growths and other deformities.
Unclean pens and poor hygiene practices.
Severe stress indicators, such as frothing at the mouth and heavy panting.
A worker at C&K Meats was recorded saying, “They do wind you up at times; anyone would think they didn’t want to die [laughs].”
Advocates for Animals, upon reviewing the footage, will be contacting Trading Standards, highlighting likely breaches of the Animal Welfare Act 2006, including:
Striking Pigs: Pigs were struck with paddles and hands despite having nowhere to go. Dr. Alick Simmons, Former UK Government Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer, reviewed the footage and commented: “There were several instances in the footage where the use of the paddle for short periods verged on the excessive. It is an offence to strike or kick animals in a slaughterhouse lairage.”
Forceful Movement to Gas Chamber: Pigs were rushed using excessive force.
Stress Indicators: Footage shows pigs frothing at the mouth, heavily panting, with one pig unable to move due to stress, ultimately killed upon arrival.
These actions may also violate Article 5 of The Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006, and Council Regulation (EC) No 1099/2009, which mandates humane handling and prevention of unnecessary suffering.
Additional breaches include:
Unclean Conditions: Pens were dirty, with pigs forced to lay in faeces and inadequate cleaning protocols.
Overcrowded Conditions: Pigs were kept in cramped pens, unable to move freely, leading to fights and increased stress.
Inadequate Transportation: Pigs arrived with injuries and in poor health, raising concerns about compliance with Assimilated EU Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005. Complaints from staff about transportation delays suggest prolonged periods without food, water and proper care, exacerbating the animals’ suffering.
Dr. Simmons added: “Both the transport of unfit animals and pigs dying in transit strongly suggest that insufficient care was taken when selecting pigs for transport”. Simmons continues: “During unloading, several lame pigs and pigs otherwise apparently unfit to travel (respiratory distress, large umbilical hernia, etc.) were shown. The welfare of these animals is likely to have been compromised prior to loading, but transportation is likely to have exacerbated any problems. These animals should not have been transported and should have been treated or killed humanely at the point of origin.”
AJP is also revealing a troubling pattern of regulatory failures and illegal practices within Britain’s slaughterhouses. Data analysis reveals that, according to government statistics, an average of ten serious legal breaches – affecting just 0.08% of animals killed – were reported daily by slaughterhouse operators across all 229 UK abattoirs in 2023.
Yet AJP has carried out five slaughterhouse investigations over five years and has found what they consider to be multiple breaches, daily. It was highlighted by The Times that, following over 200 hours of filming at G. & G. B. Hewitt abattoir and 24 hours inside Gressingham Foods slaughterhouse in Suffolk, Official Veterinarians and Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) failed to prevent illegal activities. According to The Times, G. & G. B. Hewitt’s vet reported no welfare non-compliances during AJP’s filming. Following the complaint from AJP, charges were brought against G. & G. B. Hewitt staff under the Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing (England) Regulations 2015. This was due to AJP’s filming and the subsequent seizing of CCTV.
These cases exemplify a systemic failure by slaughterhouse operators to address animal welfare issues.
Regulatory Failure: The Food Standards Agency claims that over 99.9% of UK abattoirs met animal welfare compliance standards in 2023, whilst non-compliance incidents decreased between 2021/22 and 2022/23. However, AJP’s findings on the ground suggest a stark contrast, with ongoing animal suffering largely unseen and unreported.
A referral for investigation is the highest enforcement power available to an Official Veterinarian. In 2023, only 28 non compliance breaches of the Welfare of Animals (England) at the Time of Killing (WATOK) regulations 2015 were referred for investigation out of 3,843, suggesting lax enforcement.
Legal Breaches: From 2010-2020, 43% of ‘Level 4’ severity incidents (serious and imminent risk to animal welfare or where avoidable pain, distress, or suffering has been caused) were handled with mere ‘verbal advice,’ contradicting the Food Standards Agency’s own Manual for Official Controls which mandates that a WATOK Enforcement Notice (WEN) should always be considered for such scores, unless the incident is an unavoidable accident or evidence is lacking.
Scale of the Problem: AJP believes these violations affect a significant portion of the billion plus animals slaughtered annually in the UK.
