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Thousands of people have now backed a call for two Bristol slaughterhouses to make their CCTV footage of animals being killed public.

Tulip, a pig slaughterhouse in Westerleigh and Alec Jarrett, a cow slaughterhouse in Oldland Common are the focus of a campaign for more transparency in abattoirs.

The two petitions were initiated by animal rights group Glass Walls Bristol who are trying to pressure the local abattoirs into making the footage available to the public.

The activists say the public have the right to know “the truth of what happens inside”.

One slaughterhouse owner has said they will not release videos from their CCTV saying they are following UK law and regulations insisting they are audited by independent Food Standards Agency (FSA) vets on a daily basis.

It is only relatively recently that slaughterhouses have been required to have CCTV inside their premises. A law was passed last May by Environment Secretary Michael Gove making it mandatory.

Cameras now must be installed wherever live animals are present to allow Food Standards Agency’s official veterinarians to view the footage. The veterinarians are given 'unfettered access to the last 90 days of footage' to help them monitor and enforce animal welfare standards.

The government hoped the move would also help reassure consumers that high welfare standards are being kept. However, many animal rights groups do not believe the measures go far enough.

Glass Walls Bristol set up the petition after attempting to contact the local council, MPs, the FSA, DEFRA and Red Tractor in the hope they would offer their support.

Angus Lancaster, a member of the group, said: "We exhausted all our options before creating the petition but it was the only option left open to us as we have been ignored by everyone.

“We really believe that people in Bristol have the right to see what is going on in slaughterhouses on their doorstep, we believe slaughterhouses should be transparent. We would encourage people to sign the petition if they also believe this,” he said.

The petitions address MP Luke Hall for Thornbury and Yate and Chris Skidmore MP for Kingswood directly. Mr Hall wrote back to the campaigners advising them that Tulips Foods offer tours to the public to view the operation and process flow for themselves.

However, Tulips management have since denied they offer such tours saying their abattoir “does not have the infrastructure for public tours”.

Mr Skidmore has yet to reply to any of the correspondence sent to him from members of the group or those who signed the petition. He also did not respond to a request for comment from Bristol Live.

A statement given by a Tulip Ltd spokesperson said: “We uphold the highest standards of welfare expected by regulatory authorities, customers and consumers and are 100% compliant with Defra’s Guidance on the Mandatory Use of Closed Circuit Television in Slaughterhouses and are audited against this by independent FSA vets on a daily basis. The FSA also conduct random footage sample reviews where live animals are handled.

“Animal welfare is a key priority for our organisation, our customers and consumers. We follow widely adopted practices which are recognised as the most humane in the industry and also adhere to all legislative and customer welfare requirements.”

Tulip uses a CO2 stunning method to kill the pigs that pass through their abattoir. This involves carbon dioxide gas being used to stun the pigs in chambers before they are killed. The health standards agency now believe this to be the most reliable form of slaughter.

The pig slaughterhouse has faced recent criticism from local residents who have for a long time complained about the unpleasant smell emitting from the meat plant.

(Image: barbara Eviripdou)

Last year, Wessex Water announced a £1million scheme to reroute discharge from the abattoir so that it bypasses the closest nearby village.

Campaigner Mr Lancaster said: “With public money being spent on offsetting the effects the abattoir has on the area around it, it gives more weight to our opinion that the public should have a right to know what goes on inside.”

Tulip’s director Stefan Hille has previously stated that his company will also be investing money to better manage the waste they discharge into the water system.

Members of the group and Bristol’s vegan community are a regular presence outside both slaughterhouses where peaceful vigils and protests are help in a hope to comfort the animals entering the abattoir to be killed.

The ‘Stand With The Animals’ events involves activists briefly stopping trucks loaded with cattle to console the animals and “bear witness” as they go to slaughter.

During one such vigil held in 2018 as part of the national ‘Animal Save’ movement, owner of the cow slaughterhouse Mr Alec Jarrett confronted the group and in an altercation called one protester the C word.

Mr Lancaster said: “Every week we see the state of the animals as they enter the slaughterhouses. They are often in a very bad state. Heavily pregnant mother cows, pigs with prolapsed anuses and cancerous growths and scars all over them is a regular occurrence.

“It’s very concerning and we need to know how these animals are treated when they get inside the plant,” he added.

While they campaign for the release of the CCTV footage, the group say they want to hear the stories of people who have worked at either abattoir in the past. In the hope it will shed light on the conditions and practices and treatment of the animals that goes on a day to day basis.

“We would encourage anyone to get in touch with us to tell us what goes on inside,” said Mr Lancaster.

Alec Jarrett Ltd have been contacted for comment.

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