AN Essex slaughterhouse has been slammed after secret footage was released showing pigs being punched and workers stubbing cigarettes out on the animals’ faces.
Animal rights activists from Animal Aid installed secret cameras at Brentwood-based Cheale Meats, a family-run slaughterhouse that kills up to 6,000 pigs a day, filming the shocking scenes over a four-day period.
The footage allegedly shows three different workers stubbing their cigarettes out on the faces of pigs, while one of the men lands a violent punch on the face of a pig that was walking by.
In addition, Animal Aid’s cameras appeared to show workers kicking three seriously injured pigs along and dragging others by their ears.
Animal Aid sent the footage to the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in June but say a prosecution was refused on the grounds that “CCTV footage was gained without the consent of the relevant Food Business Operator”.
Jamie Foster, a solicitor for slaughterhouse owners Elmkirk, defended his client saying: “Given the source of this material Elmkirk would not accept that all or any of the activities shown on this video relate to their premises.
“Clearly any footage which relates to our clients premises has been obtained unlawfully. I have been involved in cases previously where such evidence has been ruled to be inadmissible or the Prosecution has declined to rely on evidence which has been obtained by burglary or other unlawful means.
“A complaint has been made to Essex Police by our clients in relation to any unlawful entry into our client’s premises by an employee of Animal Aid. The outcome of that complaint is awaited.”
A spokesman for the animal rights charity hit back the Government’s refusal to prosecute saying: “Animal Aid believes that this is a politically motivated excuse and cites the recent Panorama programme, which secretly filmed care home workers without the permission of the owners, and whose film is being used to prosecute.”