In 2006, the Federal Government sought to revise the Model Code of Practice for Pigs, (version 2, 1998) by releasing a further Code ('the Revised Code') for public comment. Voiceless was one of a number of animal protection groups that prepared a submission strongly opposing many aspects of the Revised Code and raising concerns about its accompanying Regulatory Impact Statement. 

Follow this link (pdf) to read Voiceless’s submission on the Revised Code.

The Revised Code was prepared following a review by the PIMC’s Animal Welfare Working Group. It is one of many Codes that seek to prescribe ‘acceptable’ methods of treating Australia ’s farm animals. Sadly the revised Code, like the other Model Codes of Practice for the Welfare of Animals, is likely to be used by industry, Government and suppliers of animal products, to justify many cost-saving practices and procedures which cause pain and suffering to animals.

The introduction to the Revised Code suggests that it is a product of extensive consultation with industry and animal welfare organisations. However both Animals Australia and the RSPCA (who participated in the consultation process) are strictly opposed to the use of sow stalls which are permitted by the Code.

Of further concern to Voiceless, was the fact that the Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS), a technical document that was prepared to facilitate public discussion about the Revised Code, contained a number of significant errors.

Firstly, at page 7 it stated that ‘Apart from the Humane Slaughter Act, there is no current legislation or government code of practice regarding sow stalls in the United States .’ This statement is inaccurate as Voiceless's pig industry report makes clear, sow stalls have been banned in Florida since November 2002, following a successful constitutional ballot initiative by Florida ’s citizens.

Secondly, at page 7 the RIS stated that ‘Denmark, which is one of the major exporters of pigmeat to Australia and which is one of the pig meat producers in Europe... has no stated plans for banning sow stalls’. Voiceless understands from Peter Stevenson, the chief policy adviser at Compassion in World Farming, that Denmark is obliged by EU legislation to prohibit the use of sow stalls (except for the first four weeks of pregnancy) from 1 January 2013. Furthermore, the introduction of new sow stalls has been illegal in the EU and consequently in Denmark since 1 January 2003. 

Finally, at p29 the RIS stated in relation to sow stalls in Europe that the ban ‘... is a question of personal ethics, not science’. While Voiceless believes that sow stalls should be banned on the basis of ethics alone, Peter Stevenson has also advised us that:

‘It is completely inaccurate to state that the European Union (EU) prohibition on sow stalls is not based on scientific research.  The prohibition is based on a report of the European Commission's Scientific Veterinary Committee (SVC) which is comprised of veterinary scientists from across the EU.  That report reviewed a wide range of scientific literature and came to the conclusion that sow stalls are detrimental to sow health and welfare.  The SVC concluded that "No individual pen should be used which does not allow the sow to turn around easily". 

Neither the sow stalls nor farrowing crates permitted by the Revised Code require female pigs to have sufficient room to turn around.

Why should you act?
More than 5 million pigs are raised and slaughtered in Australia each year. At least 90% of these sensitive, intelligent creatures never feel the earth under their feet. Their only experience of sunshine comes as they are trucked in the fresh air to the abattoir.

Pigs are very active and inquisitive.  When given a semi-natural area to live in, they spend much of their day smelling, nibbling, manipulating objects with their snouts and rooting about in the soil.  These basic behavioural needs are largely denied to those pigs that spend their lives hidden inside factory farms.

Few species are more social than pigs; they form close bonds with each other and other species and even sing songs to their young! Weaning occurs naturally at 3 months of age but young pigs continue to live with their mothers in a close family group. Such relationships are not fostered under the modern factory farming system. To the contrary, pigs are permitted to be prematurely separated from their mothers so that they can be efficiently grown or ‘fattened’ and transformed into ham, bacon and pork products.

Pigs are intelligent and emotionally complex animals. They are at least as smart as the dogs that many of us love and share our lives with. Female pigs that are confined in sow stalls and transferred to farrowing crates often exhibit physiological disorders such as chronic stress and depression. To find out more about pigs, please follow this link to From Paddocks to Prisons, a report by Voiceless.

Follow this link to find out how you can take action.