Actors Dame Joanna Lumley and Pauline McLynn have joined forces with over 110 other high-profile individuals, experts and animal welfare NGOs to condemn a decision by Brittany Ferries to resume transporting livestock from Ireland to France, including unweaned calves.
Lumley and others including Chis Packham, Neil Hannon and Cathy Davey have added their names to a letter urging Brittany Ferries to reconsider. Renowned veterinarian and journalist Pete Wedderburn, who believes that animals should not be made to suffer by travelling long distances for slaughter, has also given his support.
“We have been informed that Brittany Ferries is planning to start transporting livestock on its Rosslare to Cherbourg route this month, and the news comes just weeks after the 30-year anniversary of Brittany Ferries’ widely celebrated decision to stop carrying farm animals from Britain to the continent, due to the suffering it caused,” says Caroline Rowley, Director of Ethical Farming Ireland.
“Brittany Ferries has stated it will not transport animals destined for slaughter, but where do they think these animals will end up?” questions Rowley. “Whether going for fattening, breeding or to a dairy farm these animals will all end up in a slaughterhouse. Furthermore, our investigations have shown that unweaned calves exported to Spain and Romania have ended up in shipments to Libya and Israel when older. Not only does this involve long sea journeys, but these are countries known to have appalling animal welfare standards, particularly at slaughter, plus of course Israel is a country at war.”
Scientific evidence shows that journeys over eight hours are detrimental to an animal’s health and wellbeing and they may suffer extremes of temperature, thirst, hunger and exhaustion, says Rowley. Unweaned calves are at particular risk because they have under developed immune systems, they are prone to illness and have no body fat to keep them going during the long, stressful journey. This is worsened by the fact they cannot be fed whilst stuck in a truck, and investigations conducted by Ethical Farming Ireland and Eyes on Animals have shown these animals can go without feed for 30 hours during the journey from assembly center in Ireland to the feeding station in France.
That is not an acceptable way to treat a 15-day old calf, says Rowley.
“We have previously communicated our concerns to senior management at Brittany Ferries after we heard a rumor in 2023 that they may resume involvement in this cruel and outdated trade. Not only that, we sent them the audit report by the European Commission that concluded these journeys breach legislation because calves are not being fed after the maximum 19-hour limit.
“I’m really surprised that a company that prides itself on its animal welfare policy has done an about turn and involved the company in a trade that likely breaches EU law. They cannot claim they don’t know about these issues,” states Rowley.
“It is rather ironic that the company’s latest marketing campaign promises customers an ‘unforgettable experience’. They certainly will not forget the haunting cries of tiny calves, bawling with hunger as they will already have gone without feed for many hours before the ferry journey from Rosslare even begins.”
The policy change, reported in Agriland on February 27, means Brittany Ferries now joins Irish Ferries and Stena Line in transporting hundreds of thousands of animals to mainland Europe every year, despite growing pressure from international animal welfare NGOs, scientists, MEPs and the public.
P&O is now the only ferry company that continues to refuse to export live animals for fattening and slaughter.
