Stop Tasmanian Animal Cruelty

Factory farming - TMA interview with Peter Singer

People concerned about animal rights can stop supporting factory farming, for a start, says Peter Singer. Article from The Melbourne Anglican.

Brutality to pigs outweighs whales’ suffering

Monday, 7 Apr 2008


Professor Peter Singer, born in Melbourne, is probably the world’s most famous and most controversial living philosopher. A passionate advocate for the world’s poor and for refugees, his arguments have much in common with Christian writings on social justice. Yet many Christians feel outrage over his support for abortion and (in extremely limited circumstances) infanticide.
However, Professor Singer is probably best known for his views on animals. He rose to fame after the publication in 1975 of his seminal work, Animal Liberation, which spawned a worldwide movement. More recently, his book The Ethics of What We Eat, co-authored with Jim Mason, took a close look at issues ranging from the cruelty of factory farming through to fair trade.
He spoke to David Glasgow on a recent visit to Melbourne.

DG: What do you make of the heightened concern about whaling in recent times in Australia? You’ve written a piece in a few newspapers arguing that if we’re concerned about the ethics of whaling, we should be concerned about the ethics of farming animals that we eat for food in Australia. Why is that?

PS: There are two reasons why you could be concerned about killing whales. One would be because you’re worried about whales becoming extinct – you think they’re marvellous creatures and it would be terrible if they become extinct. The other might be because you think they’re individual sentient beings, leading their own lives, hopefully enjoying their lives in some way, and it is a bad thing to cruelly, painfully kill them, which is what an explosive harpoon does.
If your reason is the first reason, you ought to accept that it’s OK for the Japanese to kill the numbers of whales that they’re killing, because I think the Japanese are right – given those numbers, they’re not going to cause any of these species to become extinct or even get near to it. So, if you’re still opposed to what the Japanese are doing, that suggests to me that it is your concern for the suffering and needless killing of whales.

Well, then, what is so special about whales as compared with cows or pigs for example? It’s also needless for us to kill cows and pigs for food because we don’t need to eat them. The amount of suffering that we’re causing to pigs, for example, is vastly greater than the amount of suffering that the Japanese are causing to whales, because pigs are mostly factory farmed and are pretty miserable for their entire lives. Also, we kill millions of pigs in Australia, and worldwide hundreds of millions or billions, whereas we’re talking about a thousand or a couple of thousand whales.

DG: What do you believe are the most important issues in farm animal welfare in Australia?

PS: I’d have to say forms of factory farming that confine animals so closely that they can’t move around or perform any of their natural behaviour. There’s plenty of evidence that is producing lifelong misery in these animals. They’re not suited to these conditions.
So pig production is an important issue, because that’s very intensive. Also, egg production because the battery cage is the most confining form of animal agriculture that exists – the birds can’t even stretch their wings. And table chicken production is also extremely intensive and I think clearly produces a miserable life for the chickens.

DG: What practical steps can people take to express their disapproval of the way farm animals are treated in Australia?

PS: The first thing they can do is to stop supporting those methods of treating farm animals. The way in which most people support them is that they walk down to the supermarket and they pick those products off the shelves and pay for them. That’s really all the support that the producers need. If people continue to buy them, they’ll continue to produce them. So the first thing to do is say you’re not going to give any of your money to promote this abuse of animals.

Beyond that of course you can join organisations that are trying to do something about it such as Animals Australia or the various Animal Liberation organisations that exist. You can also contact your elected representatives and let them know how you feel about the issues.

DG: What would you say to those who feel concerned for farm animals but are finding it difficult to adjust their lifestyle towards vegetarianism or veganism?

PS: At least stop supporting factory farming. If you feel you can’t do without chicken or eggs or whatever it is, you can get free range chicken and free range eggs, and it’s certainly better than getting factory farmed products.

David Glasgow is a recent law graduate and a Christian with a passionate interest in animal rights.

http://www.melbourne.anglican.com.au/main.php?pg=news&news_id=11239&s=11186

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