Greens plans MP visit to pig horror farms

Green MP and Animal Welfare spokesperson Sue Kedgley says the Sunday programme’s footage of a North Island pig farm has lifted the petticoats on the New Zealand pork industry and exposed the truth about the misery of sows kept in cages for months at a time.

“I have always believed that sow crates could only continue in New Zealand if they were kept secret, and if consumers were not able to see for themselves the true horror of these intensive pig farms.”

Ms Kedgley said she plans to take a cross party group of MPs to visit some intensive pig farms in New Zealand, now that the Pork Industry has agreed to allow visitors to these farms.

Ms Kedgley has also repeated her call for the Minister of Agriculture to visit an intensive pig farm. “He has a duty, as Minister of Agriculture, to learn about the reality of pig farming in New Zealand.”

The Green Party welcomes the Prime Minister’s recent comments that this is an appalling situation. “I also encourage him to see an intensive pig farming operation first hand. I am convinced he too would join the growing call for sow crates to be rapidly phased out.”

Ms Kedgley is now asking for the National and Labour parties to come out publicly and oppose sow crates, as the Green party has done for years. “Both the National and Labour parties have supported these cruel sow crates for the past ten years, and have refused to support calls to phase them out,” Ms Kedgley said. “The Labour Government refused to phase out sow crates when the pig code was reviewed in 2004, and National supported them."

“The review of the Pig Code this year provides an ideal opportunity for National and Labour to finally condemn the cruel use of sow crates,” said Ms Kedgley.

Ms Kedgley said it was time for the Pork Industry Board to introduce a free range pork label, as exists in the egg industry. However, consumer choice can’t solve this issue alone. “The sale of inhumanely-raised pork needs to stop altogether.”