What DAFF says about the revised Code 

What DAFF didn’t tell you 

The purpose of the Code is to encourage owners and people in charge of pigs to work for a high level of welfare.
(ref: Press release, paragraph 3). 

The Federal Codes of Practice for Animal Welfare are designed to set minimum standards of animal welfare.  They are underpinned by a cost-benefit assessment in which pigs are valued as property or ‘live stock’ as opposed to sentient, intelligent beings with intrinsic value. The current approach serves as a serious impediment to addressing the widespread suffering of animals in Australia.

The Revised Pig Code sanctions and entrenches the pain and suffering of millions of pigs across Australia every year.

Although the Code does not have the force of law in every jurisdiction, it is uniformly used to:

•    provide legal immunity to pig farmers who might otherwise be charged with animal cruelty offences; and/or
•    reduce the prospects of a successful prosecution under certain State and Territory anti-cruelty statutes.  

One of the key changes to the Code is that in future [10 years from now], sows will be confined in sow stalls for no more than six weeks of their pregnancy.
(ref: Press release, paragraph 4).

For pregnant sows, there will be a maximum of 6 weeks confinement in stalls.
(ref: FAQs, question 6). 

Assuming the pig industry continues to slaughter pigs at the rate of 5 million per year, at least 50 million pigs will travel from ‘factory to fork’ before this key change comes into place.

Under the Revised Pig Code, female pregnant pigs will still be permitted to be confined in situations known to cause them substantial emotional and physiological suffering for more than one third of their pregnancy. It remains highly unlikely that these pigs will ever set foot outdoors.

The ‘benefits’ of this key change will not apply to sows deemed exempt from the provisions because they are under ‘veterinary advice’ or ‘special care by competent stock persons.’ These terms are not defined in the Code, which creates ambiguity and the potential for pig farmers to keep sows in stalls for significantly longer than 6 weeks.

Sow stalls are already banned in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Sweden, The Netherlands and Finland and are being phased out in the US states of Arizona, Florida and Oregon. They will be banned across all European Union member states, except for the first four weeks of pregnancy, from 2013. This means that rather than being an animal welfare leader, Australia is lagging behind many countries (including Denmark, our major competitor in the pigmeat market), despite its apparent commitment to animal welfare reform.

Scientific evidence shows that confining sows during early pregnancy decreases injuries and loss of pregnancy caused by aggression from other pigs.
(ref: Press release, paragraph 5). 

Sow stalls are so small they do not allow pigs to turn around. They have been associated with physical disorders such as joint damage, leg weakness, urinary tract infections, chronic stress and stereotypical behaviour prompted by the frustration of confinement.

(Note: DAFF identified some of these actual and perceived problems with sow stalls in its FAQs; however it omitted to mention them in its widely circulated press release). 

The Code has been changed to include minimum size requirements for stalls [5 years from now] to allow animals to stand and lie down without obstruction or injury.
(ref: Press release, paragraph 7). 

Under the Revised Pig Code, pregnant pigs will be permitted to be kept in stalls measuring 0.6 x 2.2m. This amounts to an increase of 20cm² when compared with the previous Code. The ‘catch’ is that the revised Code allows for fixtures such as feeders and waterers to be included in this space provided that they ‘do not impede movement or cause injury’.

While Voiceless is opposed to the keeping of pigs in sow stalls of any size and factory farming generally, we note that this key change may well represent a ‘step back’ in terms of pig welfare. 

The Code requires people carrying out certain husbandry procedures to have formal training or be trained by someone who does (3 years from now)
(ref: Press release, paragraph 8).

“There will be a requirement for persons managing and conducting procedures on pigs to be trained or under the supervision of a person who is trained”.
(ref: FAQs, question 6).
 

The Revised Pig Code doesn’t contain any requirement for stock people to be trained. It merely states that stock people must be ‘skilled’ in pig husbandry. A training requirement was included in the consultation draft of the Code but appears to have been removed from the version endorsed by the PIMC. This change limits the accountability of stock persons by eliminating the need for them to acquire uniform, measurable skills. 

The revised Code was developed by the Primary Industries Ministerial Council-appointed Animal Welfare Group in conjunction with a wide range of stakeholders. The revision process included public consultation on proposed changes.
(ref: Press release, paragraph 12). 

A number of changes were made to the Revised Pig Code after the consultation draft was released. These changes were not announced to the public and only become evident when one compares the consultation draft with the Revised Pig Code.

Two examples are set out below.  

The farrowing crate area is to be increased in all new installations. (FAQs, question 6).  

The size of farrowing crates set out in the consultation draft was 0.5m x 2.2m. The size of farrowing crates required by the Revised Pig Code is 0.5 x 2m (ie precisely the same dimensions required by the previous Pig Code). The farrowing crate area has therefore not increased at all.

To make matters worse, the Revised Code Pig allows for fixtures such as feeders and waterers to be included in the farrowing crate area provided they ‘do not impede movement or cause injury’. This was not permitted under the previous Code, and represents a further decrease in the space available to the sows. 

Persons managing and conducting procedures on pigs will be required to inspect their pigs regularly and more often in hot conditions. (FAQs, question 6). 

The Revised Pig Code does not specify that farmers are obliged to inspect their pigs at specified intervals or at any specified temperature. The Code recommends that steps be taken when the temperature reaches 35˚C or more, however this is not a ‘requirement’. It similarly recommends that lactating and gestating sows (only) be inspected at temperatures above 38˚C. These recommendations are mere ‘best practice suggestions’, a far cry from legally enforceable requirements.