2016 Summer Update

WORKING
TOGETHER

to make New Zealand

SAFE for animals

The Dark Side of NZ Dairy

On TV Ones Sunday programme on 29th November, SAFE and Farmwatch
exposed shocking cruelty in the NZ dairy industry for the very first time.

Our investigation into the treatment

of bobby calves sparked a massive
public debate and raised awareness
of a side of the dairy industry that
many were unfamiliar with.
Few realised that in order to produce
milk, a cow needs to have a baby every
year, and that two million of these
bobby calves are killed annually in
New Zealand as by-products of
the industry.
Footage of rough-handling during
transportation, four-day old calves
suffering in crates and a slaughterman
violently kicking and throwing baby
animals has been viewed by more than
four million people and has provoked
blanket television, newspaper and
radio coverage.

Predictably, the government and

dairy industrys initial reaction was
defensive, claiming that the footage
was not representative without offering
evidence of this and disregarding the
fact that it was obtained from a number
of different farms.
Following the expos and ensuing
public outrage, we met with MPI,
Dairy New Zealand and Fonterra to
discuss our concerns. They agreed that
improvements are necessary and we
will be watching closely to ensure that
changes are made.

SAFE Demands Action

from Government
Following the latest in a series of failings at MPI,
SAFE is calling for a truly independent voice for animals.

The Ministry for Primary Industries

(MPI) has come under pressure for
not acting when originally presented
with footage of the horrific abuse
of bobby calves, well before it was
made public on the Sunday show on
29th November.
Currently, only 5% of animal cruelty
complaints made to the Ministry result
in prosecutions, and we believe that this
is letting animals down badly.
On 18th December, we organised
a demonstration outside MPI in
Wellington to call for an independent
voice for animals with sufficient funding
to make a difference.

MPI is responsible for both promoting

animal agriculture and enforcing
animal welfare law something that
we believe represents an inherent
conflict of interest.
Both Labour and the Green Party
already have separate portfolios
for animal welfare.

If you agree that animals need a truely

independent voice, please write to:
Rt Hon John Key, Prime Minister
Parliament Office, Private Bag 18888,
Parliament Buildings, Wellington 6160

NZ Dairy:
Contaminated
with Cruelty
Thanks to the support of more than
500 generous donors, SAFE was
able to place an advertisement in the
international media including
a quarter-page ad in the UK Guardian
newspaper to raise awareness of
the cruelty in every glass of milk
and force the government and
dairy industry to take the plight of
bobby calves seriously.
Not only did this help us reach
international consumers (95% of all
NZ dairy is exported overseas), it also
led to additional media coverage in
New Zealand, including a re-print on
the cover of the Dominion Post, and
played a vital role in putting pressure
on the government and industry to talk
to us about initiatives to improve the
welfare of bobby calves.
Thank you very much to everyone
that contributed!

Colony Cage Con:

Were Hatching a Plan
We need your help to free the three million layer hens still suffering
in cages across New Zealand.

Public disapproval of caging hens has led

to a phase-out of standard battery cages
by 2022. Sadly, yet another cruel cage
system will replace them. In the new
colony cages each hen has a living space
barely larger than an A4 piece of paper.
Supermarket chain Countdown sells
millions of cage eggs; every one laid
by a hen confined to a life of misery.
Countdown is owned by Woolworths
Australia who committed to stopping
selling cage eggs in Australia by 2018.
We want Countdown to make the
same commitment.
Of course, this is not just about one
supermarket chains sale of cage eggs.

It is much, much bigger than that.

With laws failing animals, companies
are in an increasingly powerful position
to help end the abuse of animals in
factory farms. McDonalds is the
perfect example, with their recent
announcement that they will stop selling
caged eggs throughout New Zealand
by the end of the year. Imagine the
domino effect if New Zealands largest
supermarket chain did the same
Countdown has told us that Kiwis
are not motivated enough to demand
change and we need your help to
prove them wrong.

You can help by calling Countdown

on 0800 40 40 40 and asking them

to stop selling eggs from caged hens.

Update:

Ban Rodeo Cruelty

Following our success in getting
Air New Zealand to remove scenes
that glamourised rodeo from their
Where to next? advertisements,
we realised that many companies
supporting rodeo are completely
unaware of the cruelty involved.
After hearing from SAFE, a number
of companies issued statements that
preclude supporting rodeo.
For example, MediaWorks told us:
We do not have any intention of
sponsoring any rodeos in the future,
while Honda confirmed that they:
will not be sponsoring any rodeos.

Rodeos would not be financially viable

without sponsorship, so encouraging
companies to review their support
is a crucial part of bringing an
end to rodeo cruelty in New Zealand.
We are also calling on the House
of Representatives to ban rodeo
altogether, and our petition has so far
gained over 36,000 signatures.
We are aiming to reach 50,000 before
we submit the petition to parliament,
so please help by encouraging friends
and family to add their names.

Visit safe.org.nz to sign the petition online, or contact Abi on: 09 361 5646
and a paper copy will be posted to you. Please ensure all forms are returned
to us by 10th March to ensure they are included in the submission!

Over a Thousand Kiwis

Pledge to Ditch Dairy

Following our recent expos of NZ dairy

farming, over 1,300 people were moved
to ditch dairy for good, sending a clear
message to the industry that consumers
are prepared to take a stand against the
suffering of cows and calves.
Furthermore, in the last year 1,400
Kiwis signed up for SAFEs 30-day
Go Veg Challenge to cut out animal
products altogether.
Not only did this mean massive gains
for animals, it also meant Kiwis were
putting their health and the welfare
of our planet first.
If you love animals but have not removed
them from your diet yet, sign up for our
30-day Go Veg Challenge and receive
weekly emails with recipes, advice on
nutrition and tips for eating out.
Visit goveg.org.nz to get started!

SAFE Volunteers
Take Action against
Climate Change

On 28th November, hundreds of SAFE

volunteers took part in events across the
country to help raise awareness of a very
important issue the link between animal
agriculture and climate change.
While environmentally conscious Kiwis
are switching to energy saving light bulbs
and taking shorter showers, many remain
unaware that animal farming produces
more greenhouse gas than all forms of
transport put together.
By taking part in events such as these,
SAFE volunteers help raise awareness
of the fact that intensive animal farming
is not only bad for animals, but bad for
the environment too.
Contact laura@safe.org.nz or call:
03 379 9711 for more information
about volunteering in your area.

Animals & Us: Mindful about

Animals in Factory Farms
Later this year, the long-awaited fifth Animals & Us textbook
will be sent to every secondary school in New Zealand.

The Animals & Us textbook series

provides schools, teachers and
students with relevant, factual
information on the human-animal
relationship.
The fifth textbook Animals in
Factory Farms includes the following
curriculum-linked lessons:

04

7-38

: 11

SN

IS

AT

CE

AT

RE

NE

UR
SO

A HU

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RE

UC
ED

MA

IO

1 UC
E: E ED
SU AN

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Taking a Stand:
Students will examine how animal
advocates turned social action into
justice for animals with the successful
campaign to ban sow stalls.

IS HUM

Bred for Meat: Is it a Life

Worth Living?:
The short and bitter life of the
100 million NZ meat chickens will
be examined, with sensitive questions
asked about the validity of breeding
animals purely for profit.
Unlocking Factory Farms:
English students will consider a
range of texts on factory farming
and animal sentience that debate the
right of humans to inflict pain and
suffering on other living beings for
the sake of cheap meat and eggs.

CR

ITI

CA

V
L E

AL

T
UA

IO

Normal Behaviour in Factory Farms:

An investigation into what constitutes
normal behaviour in factory farms will
have science students conduct studies
into animal behaviour and identify
abnormal activities.

The first four textbooks can be

found on our website or ordered by
calling Nichola on: 03 379 9711

On behalf of all animals

in New Zealand: Thank you!
Your support is vital to all the successes achieved for animals
so far, and for all the ones we know are to come.
Whether it is through sending e-mails, writing letters, signing petitions,
collecting funds, lobbying MPs, donating to a campaign or adopting
a veg diet, change only happens because of caring, compassionate
New Zealanders like you. Thank you!

Pass it on!
Help spread the message about issues affecting animals
by sharing this booklet with friends and family.

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Website: SAFE.org.nz