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Page 4 %u2013 Australian Pork Newspaper, November 2024 www.porknews.com.auA TEST case claiming that pigs suffer unnecessarily could potentially reshape the livestock industry and raise pork prices in Australia. Animal activists have taken a Victorian abattoir and the meat industry regulator to the Supreme Court of Victoria, challenging the use of %u201cgas chambers%u201d for stunning pigs before slaughter.If the activists are successful, a ban on carbon dioxide gassing could set a national precedent, prompting a shift to the more expensive electrical stunning method. The crux of the case lies in whether gassing is a legally acceptable method for stunning pigs, as there are reports of the animals showing signs of distress and pain during the process.Animals Australia argues that the Benallabased CA Sinclair abattoir should have its license revoked for failing to minimise the pain and suffering experienced by the pigs it processes. Currently, about 85 percent of pigs slaughtered in Australia are stunned using carbon dioxide gas in purposebuilt chambers, a practice that animal activists and RSPCA Australia have long condemned as distressing and painful.The RSPCA explained that pigs are placed in a chamber filled with 90 percent carbon dioxide prior to slaughter, which can result in them losing consciousness only after showing signs of pain and distress %u2013 including %u201chighpitched vocalisations.%u201dFootage taken covertly by activists from the Farm Transparency Project at various abattoirs surfaced last year, showing pigs trapped in a metal cage known as a %u2018gondola%u2019 before being lowered into chambers. The footage, which was aired on the ABC, captures the pigs thrashing around and gasping for breath.Charles Shaw KC, representing the meat industry regulator PrimeSafe, argued in court that Animals Australia lacked the standing to challenge CA Sinclair%u2019s license, suggesting their concerns were merely emotional. He contended that the Meat Industry Act does not mandate meat processing facilities to consider animal welfare.%u201cThis is after all, your honour, about the killing of animals for food,%u201d he told Justice Andrew Keogh.%u201cIt is not only not about animal welfare %u2026 it%u2019s antithetical to animal welfare, and I don%u2019t shy away from the unpleasantness of that.%u201dAdding that those who consume meat must accept that animals are killed for that end, and it%u2019s not a pleasant process.After footage of a gassing operation aired on the ABC in March last year, PrimeSafe investigated CA Sinclair and another abattoir, Australian Food Group in Laverton. While Australian Food Group closed, it avoided conviction for animal welfare breaches in the Sunshine Magistrates Court earlier this year, agreeing to pay PrimeSafe%u2019s costs of about $30,000.RSPCA Victoria animal welfare policy manager Mhairi Roberts said the organisation has longstanding concerns about carbon dioxide stunning, especially in gondolas designed for individual pigs as these animals are intelligent and social creatures.She added that there needs to be research into alternatives to the gassing system that can be made commercially viable.%u201cWe are very much advocating for both government and industry to invest in that research to find alternatives that are more humane and therefore can be made commercially viable,%u201d Ms Roberts said.Australian Pork Limited chief executive officer Margo Andrae did not address questions about the costs of different stunning methods but insisted that carbon dioxide was the best option for animal welfare. %u201cWe care about our pigs, and as an industry we share the community%u2019s concern for the welfare of our animals,%u201d Ms Andrae said.%u201cThat%u2019s why we adhere to the global best practice of carbon dioxide stunning %u2013 currently the most humane and effective method of managing pig welfare during processing.%u201dWhen asked about the research supporting the industry%u2019s claim that carbon dioxide stunning is best practice, a spokesperson for Ms Andrae provided a comparative literature review funded by Australian Pork Limited.Justice Keogh has reserved his judgment on the case. 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Formulated with a precise blend of essential vitamins, minerals and amino acids, Premi-Boost+ provides comprehensive support for the early development and growth of piglets.A screenshot from hidden camera footage taken by activists at the Benalla abattoir. Photos: Farm Transparency ProjectTest case could change future of Australia%u2019s pig slaughtering practicesPigs photographed by an investigator hidden inside the top of the chamber during a stunning operation.