Christmas Cruelty: Turkeys eaten alive on award-winning farm
Extreme suffering and cannibalism has been revealed on an Essex farm which supplies ‘English Rose’ turkeys to high-end retailers, local butcher shops and pubs.
Harrowing scenes of suffering on an award-winning farm, Grove Smith Turkeys Ltd, have been released by Animal Equality. Our investigators found injured, sick and crippled birds tightly packed into crowded sheds, with those who didn’t survive left to rot amongst the living.
The shocking footage shows:
- Birds who are unable to walk being pecked and eaten alive by their flock mates.
- Multiple birds with severely infected wounds on their heads and eyes that were left untreated. Some had gone blind.
- Crowded sheds without adequate enrichment for these inquisitive animals, causing the birds to peck each other out of boredom and frustration.
- Birds who had their beak tip cut off with a hot blade, a painful mutilation performed without anaesthetic.
- Dozens of dead birds left to rot among the living, some for so long they were reduced to just skeletons.
Marketed as ‘prestigious’ and ‘high-welfare’, the farm supplies birds branded as ‘English Rose’ turkeys to high-end retailers such as COOK and The Great British Meat Company, as well as many local butcher shops and pubs including the Youngs chain.
Awards and accolades don’t prevent animals from suffering in the meat industry, but you can. With delicious meat-free festive meals now widely available in shops and restaurants across the UK, there’s never been a better time to enjoy a cruelty-free Christmas! Get started at http://loveveg.uk
http://animalequality.org.uk
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http://twitter.com/animal_equality
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Transcript (English — en)
this award-winning high welfare farm in
Essex boasts of spacious Airy barns in
reality at Grove Smith turkeys birds are
tightly packed into sheds by their
thousands
these English Rose turkeys are given
nothing but an old chair to keep them
occupied
boredom causes these inquisitive and
intelligent birds to peck each other the
tips of their beaks are painfully
removed with a hot blade but this
mutilation doesn't prevent aggression
brought on by these unnatural conditions
many wounds become infected and are left
untreated this lame bird struggled as
our hidden cameras filmed her being
pecked for over 15 hours inadequate
checks by workers meant she was left to
suffer until she died some birds were
being eaten alive the sheds were
littered with the bodies of those who
didn't survive workers left them to rot
among the living several had been eaten
down to the bone
these birds were left outside in a
trailer overnight
this is how they spent their final hours
before slaughter their lives ended much
like these birds which we filmed on
another farm nearby
without checking for vital signs their
bodies were ripped apart
have a cruelty-free Christmas this year
please leave turkeys off your plate