Animal rights organization Animal Rights Watch denounces CO2 stunning

To read this article, take out one of our offers or log in as a subscriber. All content on NWZonline and in the NWZ news app will then be available to you without restrictions.

Wages – Screaming pigs try to break out of their tightly locked cages in panic, frantically trampling over each other. Traces of blood on the metal bars indicate that the animals are injured. The photos and videos taken by the animal rights organization Animal Rights Watch (ARIWA) are intended to show how much the animals suffer before they are slaughtered in an animal welfare slaughterhouse in Lohne (Vechta district). ARIWA says it has filed a complaint against the company. Meanwhile, the management of the medium-sized slaughterhouse has denied the allegations.

“Brutal process”

According to ARIWA, stunning pigs with CO
2
generally a “brutal and cruel” process. The alleged events in the Lohne slaughterhouse are therefore not an isolated case. According to a statement by the German Legal Society for Animal Welfare Law, the process causes “considerable pain and suffering” in the animals, as the carbon dioxide irritates the mucous membranes and leads to breathlessness and feelings of suffocation. According to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the greatest risks to animal welfare in the slaughter process throughout Europe come from misconduct by inadequately trained staff.

The company denies allegations

The company’s managing director, however, has denied the accusations: “Our company attaches great importance to the greatest possible care when dealing with animals,” he said when asked by our editorial team. The medium-sized company’s website states that “animal welfare and animal protection are our top priority.” The company advertises that by 2025, more than half of its animals will come from alternative or organic farming. “The company works transparently, uses the latest technology and is committed to “any innovation” in animal protection,” says the managing director. He condemns the “criminally created materials” of the animal protection organization.

The stunning process with CO
2
The company had “just recently” been inspected by an independent animal welfare expert, explains the managing director. The company was certified as having the “highest possible quality”. The CO
2
-Anesthesia is better than electrical stunning, the animals lose consciousness “after a few seconds”.

CITY ADMINISTRATION BREMERHAVEN
No more bread for ducks in Bremerhaven – animal rights activists raise the alarm

Legal framework

Undercover research like this is not generally permitted in Germany. According to Oldenburg media lawyer Dr. Henning Millers, freedom of research can be restricted, for example, by the prohibition of trespassing or by the protection of general personal rights. Nevertheless, the dissemination of findings obtained through undercover research could be justified if there is “a high interest in information” for the public, says the lawyer. However, this is a case-by-case decision.

When asked how ARIWA assesses the appropriateness of its actions, the spokesperson is clear: “Undercover research is the only way to inform society about what is being done to animals in factories and slaughterhouses.” Society has a right to this information, she says. A demonstration through the city center has been registered for Saturday (September 21) from 1 p.m. The activists want to speak out against CO2 in general at the event.
2
-stunning of pigs. The creator of the videos is also expected to attend the event.