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26th April 2002
Viva! Announces National March and Rally Against Factory
Farming With Launch of new Guide.
Viva! is linking up with major animal and environmental groups
to stage a massive rally, march and festival against factory
farming in London on Saturday 13 July. To mark this
announcement, the animal welfare group is launching a new
guide, Stop Bugging
Me, which reveals how almost all food poisoning originates
from animal agriculture and foods. It shows how problems have
worsened since the advent of intensive factory farming and
explains how meat eaters are at risk of contracting a catalogue
of disorders from diarrhoea, abdominal pain and exhaustion
to stillbirths, enteritis and meningitis.
According to the government, a staggering 9.5 million people
in the UK get food poisoning each year, at a cost of £750
million to the National Health Service. A massive 95% of all
food poisoning cases are caused by eating animal products.
Food poisoning bacteria include; Salmonella, Campylobacter,
Listeria monocytogens, E. coli, Bacillus cereus, Slostridium
butolinum, Clostridium perfringens and Staphylococcus aureus.
Says Viva! Campaigner Kat Macmillan, “Meat is the main
culprit for food poisoning because bugs love it! Bacteria
can multiply extremely rapidly given the opportunity and meat,
cheese, eggs and milk all provide the ideal environment for
bacterial growth. Infection can occur in the food the animals
eat, on the farms where they live, at the slaughterhouse,
at the butchers, in the restaurant and even in the home”.
Factory farming is at the root of the problem of food poisoning.
Intensive farming involves crowding as many animals as possible
into a limited space - making infection unavoidable. Bacteria
and viruses thrive in this environment and can infect large
numbers of animals within a very short time. Also, poor ventilation
in buildings means that airborne bacteria spread easily. Antibiotics
have been overused by farmers to try to combat disease and
to promote the growth of animals. This has lead to bacteria
becoming resistant to the drugs so that when the same drugs
are used to treat humans, they no longer work.
Ms Macmillan concludes, “Dangerous diseases are spreading
like wildfire on factory farms. Over the past decade, we’ve
seen BSE, swine fever, the creation of antibiotic-resistant
strains of salmonella and E.Coli and foot-and-mouth. If we
don’t act now to end factory farming, it may well end
us. In the face of political apathy, it’s up to individuals
to take action. Our 13 July march and rally will create a
force for change that cannot be ignored”.
For more information contact Kat Macmillan or Tony Wardle at
Viva! on: 0117 944 1000.
Stop Bugging Me costs just £1.00 and is available direct
from Viva!, 8 York Court, Wilder Street, Bristol BS2 8QH.
Call 0117 944 1000.
To read the guide on line, click
here.
On Saturday 13 July campaigners will be meeting at Kennington
Park at noon for speeches and will then march to Trafalger
Square. The event is sponsored by Viva!, CIWF, FAWN, PETA
and the Green Party and supported by Animal Aid, Advocates
for Animals, Care for the Wild Defense Fund, the Jewish Vegetarian
Society, the League against Cruel Sports, the Vegan Society,
Uncaged Campaigns and the Young Indian Vegetarians.
For futher information, visit www.factoryfarming.org.uk
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