DES MOINES, Iowa — It’s a big weapon but it’s not causing as much injury as when it was new.
But hog industry leaders say the best defence for farmers against secretly recorded videos of animal abuse is to ensure abuse never occurs on their farm.
“The better we can do to get our producers prepared, producers doing a better job on the farm, doing a better job screening employees coming in, fundamentally practicing what we preach (the safer the industry will be from legitimate complaints),” said National Pork Producers Council industry relations vice-president Dallas Hockman.
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Shocking videos of people abusing pigs, cattle and other animals on farms have been a key weapon used by activist groups as they try to turn public attitudes against either specific production practices or against eating meat.
The videos are generally gathered by activists that infiltrate barns intending to record abuse, which is then released at press conferences designed to draw maximum public attention.
The advent of the mobile phone camera and social media has made videos easier to do secretly and easy to distribute to audiences.
Images of animals being mistreated draw instant revulsion and Hockman said activist groups use them effectively.
“The undercover videos are the fuel that drives the engine,” he said.
Farmers need to make sure they don’t mistreat animals, and they don’t hire people who might.
The industry is also talking to food companies about general industry standards so that bad examples aren’t seen as representative.
“We hope that is making a difference. That’s not to say that next we won’t have another video,” said Hockman June 4, a few days before a video surfaced of employees mistreating dairy cows at a farm in British Columbia.
However, Hockman said that undercover videos are not drawing the attention they once did.
“The impact that they’ve had on the marketplace, either producers or customers, has been way less significant than the previous videos,” he said.
