British meat producer Cranswick’s shares plummeted on Monday after UK supermarkets suspended supplies from one of its farms that has been linked to abuse against pigs.
Covert footage emerged over the weekend that appeared to show workers at Northmoor Farm in Lincolnshire abusing piglets.
Workers were filmed holding piglets by their hind legs and slamming them to the ground, using a banned method of killing the animals known as “piglet thumping”.
Other footage showed the botched killing of a sow that left the animal screaming and writhing in pain. A sow was also shown being beaten with metal bars.
The footage was filmed by the animal rights organisation Animal Justice Project (AJP), and first reported by the Mail on Sunday newspaper.
A worker who failed to kill a sow using a bolt gun reportedly said to an undercover investigator: “Don’t let nobody see you doing like what we did.”
Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco have suspended Northmoor Farm as a supplier.
Cranswick, which owns Northmoor Farm, is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Its shares fell 7.5% on Monday.
It made nearly £2.6 billion in revenue last year, about 25% of which it said came from its fresh pork business.
About 6,000 pigs are kept at Northmoor Farm. Cranswick as a whole slaughters more than 34,000 pigs per week.
A statement on its website says: “Animal welfare is at the heart of our business.”
Images on its website show pigs and piglets in green fields and wide open spaces.
The AJP filed a formal complaint to Trading Standards as a result of its investigation.
A spokesperson for Cranswick said: “The welfare of the animals we rear is of the utmost importance and we are extremely disappointed to see the unacceptable lapse of welfare standards captured at Northmoor Farm.
“As soon as we saw the footage, we immediately suspended the team working at the farm and we are conducting an urgent and thorough investigation.
“We have also suspended the farm from supplying any pigs until the investigation is completed.”
A Tesco spokesperson said: “We take all reports of poor animal welfare extremely seriously and expect all our suppliers to adhere to our high welfare standards.
“We were shocked to see this footage and have suspended the farm in question while a full investigation is carried out.”
A Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: “These allegations involve unacceptable treatment of animals, which has no place in our supply chain.
“We are urgently investigating this with Cranswick and in the meantime, all supply from this farm has been suspended.”
A Morrisons spokesperson said: “We care deeply about animal welfare and these are shocking and concerning allegations.
“We understand that Cranswick are investigating urgently and we have suspended supply from this farm until further notice.”
A spokesperson for Asda said: “We have clear animal welfare policies that all our suppliers must uphold and we welcome the swift response and action taken by Cranswick at this farm.”
AJP founder Claire Palmer said: “We are demanding immediate enforcement of the ban on blunt force trauma and the prosecution of Cranswick.
“There must be an independent public inquiry into pig farming practices and regulatory failures.
“Ultimately, we’re calling for a legislative phase-out of pig farming in favour of a food system that no longer depends on animal suffering.”
