Corona Daily 442: Livestock Holocaust

The last two months produced a holocaust for pigs and poultry. In the USA alone, 10 million chickens were culled. By September, an estimated 10 million pigs will be depopulated.

What is unusual about this? They are bred to be killed, aren’t they?

Different operators specialise in this food chain. Pig farms breed and raise the pigs. On reaching the required market weight, the pigs are despatched to the slaughterhouses. The slaughterhouses slaughter them as per the law of the country. Animals are supposed to be sedated before being killed.  Meat packing giants such as Tyson foods (USA) are responsible for processing, packaging and distribution of meat that is served in a restaurant or sold in the supermarket.

In the USA, slaughterhouses possibly have the worst working conditions. Mostly undocumented workers are cramped in unhygienic conditions; accidents are three times higher than average, amputations are a weekly affair. (Difficult to decide whose life is more miserable: those who kill or those who get killed). If a passionate meat-eater were to visit a slaughterhouse, he may convert to vegetarianism.

In March, the slaughterhouses became incubators for Coronavirus. Half of the American Covid-19 hotspots were linked to meat processing. By 8 May, at least 30 major slaughterhouses were shut because of the outbreaks, affecting 45,000 workers, reducing pork slaughter capacity by 40%. More than 6500 workers were infected, and 30 died.

Once the slaughterhouses closed, the pig farms and poultries were in a fix. Pigs grow in six months, and broilers in six weeks. Sows (female pigs) were already pregnant, delivering piglets. Piglets would take the place of those sent to the slaughterhouse. The farms and poultries ran out of space with so many pigs and chicken. (Cows are not yet severely affected because they are on ranches). With business busted and supply chains disrupted, costs must be cut. No sense in feeding livestock when it can’t be converted into meat. In such cases, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) recommends “depopulating” (or euthanizing) animals.

Farmers who raise the pigs don’t have the facilities of a slaughterhouse. Killing is not their job. AVMA’s preferred methods are: injectable anesthetic overdose, gassing, shooting with guns, electrocution and manual blunt force trauma. These are the “more humane” methods. If that is not practical, in constrained circumstances (such as the current pandemic), ventilator shutdown (VSD) combined with CO2 gassing and sodium nitrite is suggested. Fire fighting foam has been used in places, which prolongs the suffering. Nitrogen gas must be added, if possible, to make the death faster.

Leah Garces, president of “Mercy for animals” described it graphically: “manual blunt force is slamming piglets against the ground, and VSD is cooking pigs alive”.

Disposing of the thousands of carcasses is another problem farmers are not familiar with. They try to rent trailers to haul the carcasses away.

In April and May millions of animals had to be depopulated by suffocation, drowning, shooting or smothering by water-based foam. Meanwhile, six-mile long queues wait outside food banks and millions face hunger.

Ravi