Cattle exported live from Australia suffer death by sledgehammer
News
The footage of Australian cattle being sledge hammered to death in Vietnam is sickening.
It was taken at an abattoir where an Animals Australia investigation found Australian cattle are sledgehammered to death on a nightly basis.
The investigation has evidence indicating tens of thousands of Australian animals are leaving approved supply chains for non-approved slaughter houses in Vietnam where death by sledgehammer is common. This includes abattoirs where the cruel practice of forcing animals to intake water to inflate their weight is also prevalent.
Animals Australia has further documented Australian cattle being incorrectly stunned with Australian supplied captive bolt devices, with the butchering process commencing whilst the animals are still alive. This happens at both Australian government approved and non-approved abattoirs. Ear identification tags have also been removed so that cattle cannot be traced back to the exporter responsible for them.
In the last two years over half a million Australian cattle have been exported to Vietnam. In 2016, 20 to 30 thousand have been exported to Vietnam each month.
“With public confidence in the traceability system in tatters, the government has no choice but to suspend exports to Vietnam to spare further animals from horrific abuse”, said Nicola Beynon Head of Campaigns for World Animal Protection in Australia.
“If anyone had any faith in the Department of Agriculture’s ability to regulate the live export trade and protect animals from abuse, it has surely been shattered.”
Despite repeated breaches in multiple countries, not one exporter has had their licence suspended or been prosecuted.
At the election, World Animal Protection is calling for both major political parties to face up to the unacceptable risks in the live animal export industry and the inability of the Department of Agriculture to secure compliance.
“An Independent Office of Animal Welfare must be an immediate priority for whoever forms the next government. To protect animals, and cattle producers, so too should be an urgent plan to phase out high risk live exports in favour of an exclusively chilled and frozen meat trade”, concluded Ms Beynon.