Story By: Jonathan Macias, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
Video Credit: CEN/Equalia
This leaked footage of abattoir workers stamping on lambs, throwing them across rooms and severing throats when they have seemingly not being properly stunned has been presented as evidence in a criminal complaint against the slaughterhouse.
The footage was reportedly filmed at the Carnicas Salvanes slaughterhouse in the municipality of Villarejo de Salvanes in the central Spanish autonomous community of Madrid and was released by the animal rights group Equalia.
In the video, workers are seen increasing the suffering of the animals destined for slaughter with the footage used in a criminal complaint about breaches of animal rights laws and hygiene laws.
Equalia coordinator David Herrero told Central European News (CEN) that one sheep, shown lying in the dark in the footage, was left “agonising for over 10 hours without being slaughtered.”
Herrero told CEN: “The workers disregard their functions and some lambs are hung up next to dead animals without bleeding out.
“One of them woke up after half an hour and we had to stop filming. We do not know if was eventually skinned alive.”
Herrero told CEN that the footage has been presented as evidence in a formal complaint the group is filing against the abattoir.
He said that they have reported the case to a court in the city of Leganes for violating EU animal welfare laws as well as hygiene norms.
Run by three brothers, the slaughterhouse has denied the accusations and Carnicas Salvanes manager Julian Range claimed in local media that they are “very calm” about the footage, adding that “random images can be interpreted as anyone wants”.
According to local media, Carnicas Salvanes underwent an audit carried out by the Community of Madrid last August, and the images were recorded between June and September.
Herrero told CEN: “The problem is that auditors do not know what happened in the days before the audit. That is why we asked the slaughterhouse to install security cameras so that the footage can be checked by the local authorities.”
Laura Duarte, the new president of the Animalist Party Against Mistreatment of Animals political party, said that the footage “makes it very clear that legislation must be tightened”.
Duarte added that thanks to the good work of associations such as Equalia, it is possible to “prove that all this happens”.
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