CHRISTMAS will soon be here. TV and newspaper adverts show mouthwatering images of that centrepiece of the Christmas dinner table – the turkey or chicken. 

Supermarket ‘bargain deals’ are designed to be hard to resist. But how many are aware of the life that most of these creatures will have endured for that oven-ready end-product to be so cheap? 

Intensive or factory-farmed poultry (a secretive industry) involves many thousands of birds in hangar-size ‘sheds’, fattened artificially fast to cut costs; not enough room to move about or flap their wings; legs becoming unable to bear their unnatural weight – to mention a few of the problems of this intensive production of animals for food. Most poultry raised this way never sees daylight or a blade of grass in their entire miserable lives, because they are just seen as a ‘product’. So, when nicely packaged and offered at a bargain price, the real cost will have been borne by living creatures, the turkeys and chickens. 

Compassion in World Farming works tirelessly to raise welfare standards for food animals, and their website ciwf.org will provide information for those people who wish to know the facts behind the adverts andto make an informed and compassionate choice for their Christmas meal.

K Hackman
Axminster