Target: Steve Reed, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, United Kingdom
Goal: Seek swift criminal charges, lifetime animal-ownership bans, and strict corporate sanctions for any individuals reportedly kicking, striking, and cruelly killing piglets on a commercial farm.
A months-long undercover investigation reportedly captured workers at a large commercial pig facility kicking piglets, striking them with boards and paddles, and aiming blows at sensitive areas like the snout and eyes. Footage purportedly depicts injured animals with open wounds confined in pens caked with filth, some left lame and visibly writhing. One piglet was reportedly left dying for more than a day as others cannibalized an open wound, while multiple “botched” killings allegedly prolonged agony for tens of seconds.
These scenes, as reported, also suggest that legally required welfare checks were routinely ignored or rushed, with inspection of hundreds of animals allegedly completed in minutes. Additional clips purportedly show animals bleeding from severe injuries, including a ruptured hernia, and young pigs kicked across floors while workers laughed. Major retailers have reportedly suspended supplies from the implicated operation, and an assurance body has announced an investigation, underscoring the seriousness of the claims.
When farm animals are apparently brutalized and neglected, accountability must be certain and consequences meaningful. Criminal prosecution of any responsible personnel, lifetime bans from working with animals, and strong penalties for any complicit corporate actors are essential. The government should also mandate unannounced inspections, independent CCTV review, and enforceable retraining or license revocation where appropriate. Sign below to urge decisive action to hold all alleged abusers to account and to deter future cruelty.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Secretary Reed,
Undercover footage reportedly documents grave cruelty at a commercial pig facility: piglets kicked across floors, struck with boards, and targeted in the snout and eyes; wounded animals confined in filthy pens; and multiple “botched” killings that allegedly prolonged suffering. One piglet was reportedly left dying for over 30 hours as others cannibalized an open wound. Such scenes, if proven, reflect extreme disregard for even the most basic standards of animal care.
We respectfully ask your office to coordinate with the Animal and Plant Health Agency, local authorities, and police to ensure full criminal investigations, swift referrals for prosecution, and the pursuit of maximum penalties for any individuals found responsible. Appropriate sanctions should include lifetime bans on animal ownership or employment, corporate fines commensurate with the harm, and binding corrective orders.
Please also champion systemic safeguards—independent CCTV monitoring with routine review, frequent unannounced inspections, enforceable staff training, and immediate license suspension where serious breaches are found. The animals who reportedly suffered deserve justice, and the public deserves confidence that such cruelty will not be tolerated.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo credit: Tambako The Jaguar
