FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Tricia Barry, Farm Sanctuary, 607-583-2225 ext. 233,
tricia@farmsanctuary.org
Farm Sanctuary Issues Statement on the Swine Flu Outbreak
Gene Baur: “Factory farms are…a prescription for disaster”
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. – April 28, 2009 – Farm Sanctuary, the nation’s leading farm animal protection organization, today issued a statement from Gene Baur, president and co-founder, regarding the current global outbreak of swine flu originating in North America:
“For more than 23 years, Farm Sanctuary has warned that cramming thousands of animals into factory farms is not only bad for the animals. These stressful, filthy, disease-ridden confines are also bad for humans. Animals packed by the thousands in unnatural conditions suffer immensely and these unhealthy, overcrowded operations are a breeding ground for disease. For too long, agribusiness and the USDA have failed to adequately address animal and human health risks – swine flu, avian flu, MRSA, e-coli, salmonella, mad cow disease – the list goes on. Factory farms are nothing less than a prescription for disaster.”
Through its Anti-Confinement Campaign, Farm Sanctuary is urging the introduction and passage of legislation that would eliminate the use of some of the most common confinement systems in place on factory farms – gestation crates for breeding pigs, battery cages for egg laying hens and veal crates for calves. The organization is also urging passage of federal bills H.R. 1549 and S. 619 that would eliminate the use of sub-therapeutic antibiotics on factory farms. More information on pending legislation can be found at http://www.farmsanctuary.org/issues/legislation/.
Note: Photos and video b-roll footage of pig factory farms from Farm Sanctuary investigations are available by request. Please contact media@farmsanctuary.org.
About Farm Sanctuary
Farm Sanctuary is the nation’s leading farm animal protection organization. Since incorporating in 1986, Farm Sanctuary has worked to expose and stop cruel practices of the “food animal” industry through research and investigations, legal and institutional reforms, public awareness projects, youth education, and direct rescue and refuge efforts. Farm Sanctuary shelters in Watkins Glen, N.Y., and Orland, Calif., provide lifelong care for hundreds of rescued animals, who have become ambassadors for farm animals everywhere by educating visitors
about the realities of factory farming. Additional information can be found at farmsanctuary.org or by calling 607-583-2225.
