Day 088 - 13 Feb 95 - Page 63
1 ventilated system, air-condition system. Those have been
2 eliminated or being eliminated by the farms because this
3 system of kennels is so simple. It is all insulated. It
4 is very natural. They keep warm in deep straw. The growth
5 is just as good as anywhere else and you do not have the
6 costs of the energy to heat the places up, so it is a much
7 more economic system at that point.
8
9 Q. So some of your suppliers are using the flat-deck system
10 now?
11 A. Not to my knowledge.
12
13 Q. When did they stop using it?
14 A. I do not know individually as such.
15
16 Q. When did the last one stop using it?
17 A. When did the last one stop using it?
18
19 Q. Yes.
20 A. They have been in stock as the years go on. People
21 because there has not been the money in the pig industry to
22 be able to refinance such systems because they are highly
23 expensive and a much cheaper one is the system we have
24 developed.
25
26 Q. But when did the last of your suppliers phase out the
27 flat-deck system?
28 A. An honest answer that is I do not know.
29
30 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Put it another way, do your best to recall
31 when you were last aware of any of your suppliers still
32 using the flat-deck system?
33 A. Three or four years ago probably I heard of people
34 using them, but it is not a common practice as it was.
35
36 MS. STEEL: But say 10 years ago would there have been a lot of
37 suppliers using them?
38 A. Oh, yes.
39
40 Q. Yes?
41 A. Yes.
42
43 Q. They have darkened houses containing rows of single-tiered
44 metal pens, yes? That is what the flat-deck system is, is
45 that right?
46 A. Rows of dark?
47
48 Q. Darkened housing, just a building containing rows of single
49 tiered metal pens usually with slatted metal floors.
50 A. There is a huge variation of flat decks, anything from
51 roughly what you described to flat decks outside.
52
53 Q. Were the majority indoors or outdoors 10 years ago?
54 A. What, flat decks?
55
56 Q. Yes.
57 A. I would say indoors.
58
59 Q. A typical one, would it be right, that it would have single
60 tiered metal pens usually with slatted metal floors?
