A pig peers over bars with sad eyes.

Pig gas chambers receive national attention on ABC’s 7.30

Footage released by Farm Transparency Project reveals pigs in Australian slaughterhouses are spending their final moments screaming in extreme distress and pain.

Animals Australia

Animals Australia team

Last updated April 27, 2023

Farm Transparency Project investigators have captured the pain and terror that is routine for pigs in slaughterhouses across Australia. Now, the shocking practice of suffocating pigs inside gas chambers has been given the urgent attention it deserves in not one but two ABC 7.30 reports.

The first ABC 7.30 report aired on the 27th March 2023 featured world-first footage taken by Farm Transparency Project investigators from within three Australian pig slaughterhouses.  The incredible footage made clear just how much pigs – whether factory-farmed, free-range or RSPCA Approved – suffer in cruel carbon dioxide gassing systems. It was later reported that Coles and Woolworth source pig meat products from the slaughterhouses featured in the story. These sensitive, intelligent animals were filmed screaming out in fear and pain, and gasping for air. This is the pig industry’s way of killing as many animals as possible in the shortest amount of time. Watch the full in-depth story here:

Weeks later, ABC 7.30 reported on a critical update on the pig gas chamber investigation story. Animals Australia’s further examination of the footage revealed more disturbing truths not uncovered in the original report. Animals Australia’s legal counsel Shatha Hamade was interviewed about the legality of using the cruel gas chamber devices – and explained that there is strong evidence that they should never been approved for use in the first place. She argued that practice of pig gas stunning does not meet basic slaughter standards in Australia and even contravenes the industry’s own Codes of Practice. Watch the full story here:

Despite the grievous suffering pigs endure, gassing is legal and routine in Australia. With laws failing animals, the greatest hope they have is people becoming informed and making choices that better align with their values.

Learn more about the standard practice of pig gassing in Australia and what you can do to end the suffering of these sensitive, intelligent animals.

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Almost all pigs killed in Australia now, and increasingly around the world, are [stunned] in these gas chamber systems.
Chris Delforce
Farm Transparency Project Investigator