Day 088 - 13 Feb 95 - Page 23
1
2 Q. So far as you are aware, does the business of removing
3 piglets from their mother at the age of 24 days cause any
4 distress either to the mother or to the piglets?
5 A. I think that would be absolutely wrong to say there is
6 no distress. That is quite wrong. There would be some
7 distress caused, but when one looks at it overall, you have
8 a situation sometimes where a sow will absolutely just
9 abandon pigs, No. 1, and for what reason, there may be
10 other reasons. Also, if you look at it, it does not matter
11 at what stage in age you wean because through the ages
12 there has been five weeks weaning, three weeks weaning.
13
14 Q. Pause there, when you were a boy what was the age at which
15 pigs were weaned?
16 A. Long time ago, sir -- eight weeks.
17
18 Q. Eight weeks?
19 A. Yes, and at every stage, no matter what the age, there
20 would be distress. So, it is very, very difficult to
21 assess whether there is more or less a stress factor at
22 whatever time. I believe, personally, that we find that
23 the 21, 24, 25 day weaning, we have less problems with the
24 sows at that stage because one keeps the sow in a good
25 welfare condition and the pigs, with modern technology and
26 feeds, actually have the advantage now of being fed food
27 and milk substitutes that was not there 50 years ago. So,
28 the pig does lose nothing, in my opinion, in weaning early.
29
30 Q. From your experience, and it is considerable, evidently,
31 Mr. Bowes, what effect does stress and anxiety -- I do not
32 use the word "unhappiness", but let us use it --
33 unhappiness, have upon the weight producing capacity of an
34 animal?
35 A. We have a belief in our company, we try to use it as a
36 doctrine, if you like, within the company, we call it the
37 "comfort factor", and if we through our process of
38 producing our pigs make sure that our pigs are comfortable
39 all the time, and that also and at that stage by there
40 being a comfort, there will be obvious commercial benefits
41 in the growth -- if I can just finish the comfort factor,
42 it goes through the plant, it goes through our staff so
43 that eventually we find that because we do retail pack as
44 well, sir, for packets to go on to the supermarkets
45 shelves, that the actually consumer will be comfortable
46 with our production.
47
48 Q. After they have been weaned -- I am still with the outdoor
49 pigs -- they are kept in these, I do not what you call
50 them, I call them enclosures, pens would probably be a
51 better English word, is it not, the wooden ones?
52 A. The weaners? We call them kennels or bungalows.
53
54 Q. Kennels, until, as I think you said, they are 40 kilograms,
55 is that right, these outdoor ones?
56 A. That is correct for the freedom food products.
57
58 Q. What do they get to eat while they are in this outdoor
59 kennel?
60 A. A properly balanced diet, sir.
