Suffering and Abuse Exposed at Fish Slaughterhouse Supplying Kroger
Investigators filmed the aquatic animals slowly suffocating and being slaughtered while fully conscious.
Illegal abuse has been documented at a catfish farm in Central Mississippi, according to a new investigation by Animal Equality.
Animal rights group Animal Equality filmed footage at Simmons Farm, one of the largest USDA inspected catfish slaughterhouses in the U.S., who supply grocery stores Kroger, Save a Lot, and Piggly Wiggly, as well as restaurant chains Cracker Barrel and Captain D’s.
Investigators documented fish dumped onto a conveyor belt where they were left “gasping and slowly suffocating” while workers took breaks.
Most fish were also fully conscious when slaughtered due to the ineffective electrocution method used to stun them and the time it took them to reach the industrial machine used to chop them up.
In addition, investigators also reported turtles and “unwanted” caught in Simmons’s catfish nets that were abandoned in empty buckets before being ground up alive.
“If one pig were killed in this manner, the slaughterhouse would be shut down,” said Sean Thomas, international director of investigations for Animal Equality.
The group called for a criminal investigation into the farm and sent its findings to the Yazoo County prosecutor John Donaldson.
Commenting on Animal Equalities’ investigation, he responded: “I’m not interested in any of this,” according to an email shared with NBC News.
Animal Equality also filed complaints with state attorneys general in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee, alleging that Simmons's false and misleading claims about its products and production practices constitute unfair or deceptive trade practices, according to the group.
In response to this, Simmons agreed to remove from its website the claim that the fish are processed “within 30 minutes.”
Fish Feel Pain
Although the world is becoming increasingly aware of the exploitation of animals in the food system, many people continue to disregard fish from these ethical considerations. Pescatarian is a popular diet choice, as though the suffering of these aquatic animals is less important despite their sentience. And scientific evidence has proven that fish experience pain and are covered with sensory receptors that make their bodies even more sensitive than human skin.
Animal Equality are calling for federal legislation to protect aquatic animals from unnecessary suffering during the slaughter process. You can find the petition here.
The best way to protect aquatic life - and the oceans - is to ditch the fish. Here are some of our favorite plant-based fish alternatives.
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