Attacks and episodes of cannibalism among pigs, proliferation of rats and carcasses left to rot, pigs mutilated and in critical condition. The new report from Greenpeace Italia brings to light yet another shocking investigation into an intensive breeding farm in the province of Ferrara, which supplies pigs to Pellegrina, a company of the Veronesi Group.
The images and videos collected by the Association show a reality of suffering and abandonment that we can hardly imagine. In this farm, injured pigs, rat infestations e cases of cannibalism among animals are just some of the documented horrors.
Read also: Abuse and violations of horses in a slaughterhouse in Emilia-Romagna: the shocking investigation by Animal Equality
A guard dog living between the bars of his prison, a pig eating the carcass of another: images that make us reflect and shake our conscience.
The serious living conditions of the animals
The data is alarming: infestations of rats that circulate freely among the animals, exposing both them and the workers to serious risks of infections and zoonoses. But it’s not just this. The images reveal severely injured animals, with ear wounds, severed tails and untreated umbilical hernias. Most of these animals do not receive any medical care. Yet, it is not only the physical pain that affects, but also the psychological pain resulting from the extreme stress conditions to which they are subjected.
More chilling images also show abandoned pig carcasses, one of which was in an advanced state of decomposition, eaten by other animals. These behaviors are not the effect of a single error, but the result of a system that favors the maximization of profits, ignoring the well-being of the living beings involved.
As we now well know, this investigation is not an isolated case. Greenpeace had already denounced other structures linked to the Veronesi Group, including a farm in Mantua, a seizure which took place last November. In this new case, the Bondeno farm, Società Cascone, appears to be among the largest emitters of ammonia in Italy, contributing significantly to environmental pollution and the health of the territory.
We talked about it here: Seizure of all the pigs and a 10 thousand euro fine for the La Pellegrina farm after the Greenpeace complaint
Big companies like Veronesi and its suppliers rake in huge profits while the public, through European agricultural funds (CAP), indirectly finances unsustainable practices that damage our environment, animal health and people’s quality of life, the report says.
An unsustainable production model
Not only the animals, but the entire ecosystem pays the price of this intensive model. The huge quantities of ammonia emitted by these plants contributes to air, land and water pollution. Natural resources are exploited indiscriminately to produce animal feed, while the surrounding territory, often already fragile, suffers irreversible damage.
The intensive farming model not only ignores animal welfare, but also damages the environment, creating environmental and social costs that fall on the entire community. It is a system that concentrates profits in the hands of a few and leaves a legacy of an environmental and health disaster that no one wants to face.
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Greenpeace doesn’t stop here. With the support of other organizations, he presented the bill to the Chamber of Deputies “Beyond intensive farming“, to transform our agri-food system into a model that favors agroecological methods, reduces meat consumption and places small farmers and the health of our planet at the center. This approach will not only improve the lives of animals, but also that of people and the environment around us.
As for us? It’s time to change our eating pattern. Our responsibility is to choose foods that respect the environment, animals and our health.
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