Britain has another problem, people are missing in slaughterhouses. If nothing is done, we will destroy 100,000 pigs, breeders warn

Photo: SITA / AP , Dan Kitwood

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson

After a chaotic week, when British drivers panicked for fuel, there was still a large number of petrol stations on Friday, although the British government reassures that the situation is improving. However, representatives of the sector concerned point out that there are still about 2,000 service stations without fuel and that, according to Reuters, several dozen pumps are closed in London and southern England alone. Another warning to the government comes from pig farmers that Brexit has caused a shortage of staff in slaughterhouses and threatens to kill more than 100,000 pigs in the short term if it does not change quickly.

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Due to fuel distribution problems, the British government announced late last week that it plans to issue temporary visas for 5,000 foreign truck drivers. and 5,500 employees in the poultry industry, Reuters reported. However, the government has not indicated any plans for other sectors. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and several ministers in the labor-struggling sector have said they should look for British workers to raise wages and improve working conditions.

However, farmers risk butchers and slaughterhouse workers will be forced to have up to 150,000 pigs killed. According to the head of the British National Farmers’ Union, Minette Batters, if the government does not issue visas for foreign workers in this sector, there is a risk that “within a week or 10 days it will be necessary to kill about 150,000 pigs directly on farms.” According to Batters, 43% of seats are vacant in the field of meat processing. There is also a large number of seasonal workers on farms or drivers. As a result, the animals whose meat was already supposed to be in the retail network are still on the farms, which causes problems in maintaining welfare, ie animal welfare.

“There are currently about 120,000 pigs, whose meat was already supposed to be in shops or households, “said Wilson. She added that they are getting to the point where they are forced to inform the government that if they do not help them quickly, they will be forced to kill these animals on farms, as there will be no other option. She pointed out that the current crisis was also being felt by consumers, as processors had restricted the supply of individual pigmeat products to shops.