Update on Exotic Meat Trading - Response from P.E.T.A.

Below is the response from People for Ethical Treatment for Animals concerning Brentwood Trading Group. At this stage it's not saying a lot but P.E.T.A at least have come back to me. World Wildlife Fund have also responded that they have passed on my concerns to the right people in their organisation. Yahoo have also contacted me and will be looking into this website as well. So far so good. For some of my friends who are in farming P.E.T.A has been a thorn in their side with sometimes unrealistic demands being made on genuinely ethical farmers and their families in the U.S who don't own huge feedlots or factory farm their animals. While there is indeed a place for organisation like P.E.T.A there also needs to be a balance in their approach. Maria had put across her point on factory farming practices. We almost had a similar type setups occuring here in New Zealand however our pasture raised beef seems to be a better option in the long term. Economics and a pressure to be more efficient can mean farmers have had to resort to feedlots in order to maintain their incomes. I don't truly know nor can I form an opinion when I haven't seen these types of farming operations for myself as in visiting one. One thing I do know - our dairy farmers here have gone from herds of perhaps 120 cows to upwards of 450. As some of my blogger friends know the investment and time that is inputted is beyond just a financial one. It's a seven day a week 365 days a year committment. You can't sleep in on Christmas Day - the cows still need to be milked and there's still jobs on the farm to be done and it goes too for any farm. Read the email below. Opinions are welcome.

Dear Liz,

Your e-mail was passed on to me as I work for the Asia-Pacific affiliate of PETA, which actively campaigns in New Zealand. Thank you for contacting PETA and for your concern regarding the selling of exotic animals’ meat. Please remember, however, that it is just as barbaric for the rest of the world to eat cows, pigs, chickens, and other animals raised on factory farms. These animals may not be as familiar to us, but they are just as capable of pain and suffering as zebras and tigers are. Animals on factory farms are crowded in small cages or stalls, many never see the sun, breathe fresh air, or feel grass under their feet.

Cows raised for beef are branded, castrated, and dehorned without anesthesia. They often die of pneumonia, dehydration, or heat exhaustion from spending days without food or water in overcrowded trucks on their way to feedlots or slaughterhouses.

Female pigs are kept pregnant or nursing constantly and are squeezed into narrow metal stalls where they can’t turn around or even nuzzle their babies. Males are castrated and have their tails cut off without any painkillers.

Chickens spend their entire lives crammed in cages so small they’re barely able to move. They lose their feathers and their skin turns red and raw from rubbing against the wire walls. To keep them from pecking each other in frustration, factory workers slice off chicks’ beaks with a hot blade, sometimes taking part of their tongues or faces with it.

Our understanding of the cruelty inherent in the meat industry becomes even clearer when we realize that it’s all unnecessary: Humans do not need to eat animal flesh. In fact, we’re healthier if we don’t. And since we have so many choices as consumers these days, there’s simply no excuse for continuing to raise and slaughter animals for food. The only truly humane option is to choose alternatives to animal products—which, luckily, isn’t as hard as you might think.

The best thing that anyone can do to help all of these animals is to go vegetarian. Please visit GoVeg.com to find out more about vegetarianism. Please contact me anytime and let me know if there is anything I can do to help.

Best,

Maria Fernandez Salom

Activist Liaison

PETA Asia-Pacific

---