RNZSPCA: "Excuses are outdated, end Animal Welfare Act breaches"

The Royal NZ Society for the Protection of Animals is supporting the Green Party’s Animal Welfare Bill.

The Bill has been drawn from the parliamentary ballot and if it becomes law certain “exceptional circumstances” practices permitted in a code of animal welfare will be phased out within five years.

“These practices actually breach key sections of the Animal Welfare Act so there is an issue here of consistency,” says RNZSPCA National Chief Executive Robyn Kippenberger. “New Zealand is a late starter when it comes to the welfare of food animals, so the proposed Bill is long overdue.

“The National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) has used the “exceptional circumstances” clause to enable producers to use layer hen caging and sow crates when they have purported that the economic impact of changes would seriously affect their businesses. We believe those claims to be overstated and that they have been given too much credence in the past.”

Green Party animal welfare spokesperson Sue Kedgley said in a statement last week that the NAWAC acknowledges that sow crates do not fully meet the obligations of the Act.

Despite this, sow crates are allowed to be used indefinitely under an out-dated 'exceptional circumstances' provision, she says.

“The proposed Bill represents a step in the right direction for animal welfare in NZ – but it needs to be passed,” says Ms Kippenberger. “Sow crates have been banned in the UK as they are deemed inhumane. Parliament has been very responsive to calls for improved animal welfare recently so we are hopeful this bill will get the support it deserves.

The SPCA is making headway with animal welfare for food animals with its Blue Tick certification programme, Ms Kippenberger says.

“The Blue Tick identifies animal food products as being produced in a manner that is guaranteed to be cruelty-free and enables consumers to choose humanely produced goods. But there is still a long, long way to go towards good welfare for the majority of intensively farmed animals, and we’re thrilled to see the momentum building to achieve this.”

To earn the right to display the Blue Tick logo, producers must meet the SPCA’s stringent welfare standards and undergo thorough auditing on a regular basis by qualified and independent inspectors.

You can find out more about the SPCA’s Blue Tick programme here http://rnzspca.org.nz/.