Day 095 - 02 Mar 95 - Page 21
1 MS. STEEL: Would you accept: "Millions sows used for breeding
2 endure life inside metal crates so small that they are
3 prevented from being able to turn around"?
4 A. No, that is incorrect, no. Two things I do not agree;
5 (1) there is no -- I do not believe there is millions of
6 sows for breeding purposes, and I do not believe in that
7 statement, no -- not from what I have seen.
8
9 MR. JUSTICE BELL: The second is you want to ask a question
10 about that.
11
12 MS. STEEL: You agreed there are 88 million pigs raised annually
13 in the US, and that 60 per cent of them were housed
14 intensively in total confinement so there would be
15 millions, would there not?
16 A. I got lost again. Are we in the same paragraph?
17
18 MR. JUSTICE BELL: No. When you were asked to look at parts of
19 the letter which Council for the American Society for the
20 Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, that Society, apparently,
21 owned shares in McDonald's Corporation?
22 A. OK.
23
24 Q. It put forward a proposal for a meeting which was rejected
25 by the company, so Council for the Society wrote a letter
26 putting its case for reconsideration and parts of that
27 letter were put to you. One of them includes a statement
28 which you were prepared to accept as accurate, that 88
29 million pigs were raised a year for food in the United
30 States. It is on the back of those hogs that Ms. Steel is
31 challenging your statement that you do not think there are
32 a million sows farrowing in the States at any one time.
33 A. Yes, OK. Thank you for explaining. I misunderstood
34 the question and this statement. When I referred to
35 breeding sows, it is those sows that are produced, it is
36 the breeding stock, which is different than what is
37 referred here as the ones who produced ---
38
39 Q. Right, very well.
40 A. So I was one chain before.
41
42 Q. Yes, I see.
43
44 MS. STEEL: Would you accept that it was true then for the ones
45 that are breeding the piglets to be fattened up?
46 A. The numbers -----
47
48 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Let us forget the numbers.
49 A. OK.
50
51 Q. What about a significant number of them spending life or a
52 great part of their life in metal crates so small that they
53 are prevented from ever turning around. That is the real
54 thrust of the statement?
55 A. Not from what I have seen.
56
57 MS. STEEL: What about when they are actually having the
58 piglets?
59 A. No.
60
