To think bad of people that work in slaughterhouses??

[RiverMeadow]

I was reading something earlier and it got me thinking about the members of staff who actually work in slaughterhouses and who see these things first hand.

Regardless of whether you eat meat or not we're all still human and I'd assume it's a job that's a very hard one emotionally... or am I wrong?? Do the colleagues just look at it like a job and not physically killing animals? It would break my heart 😭

[BatleyTownswomensGuild]

I don't think I have the right to judge them as I eat meat...

[Icantdothisagainhelp]

And before you pounce, no it wasn't me that reported you post, and yes I have name changed but will be changing back shortly.

[MichaelMumsnet]

Hi all. We've removed some of the posts that just look like a personal spat. Please do try to address the point and not the person.
If you see it continue - please report and we'll return with the big modding button.
Peace and love (if pos)
MNHQ

[SadSisters]

It’s ok, I didn’t see whatever it was you posted that triggered the mass deletion, so I’m not offended!

[walksen]

When I was a teenager I was curious about how animals were treated and a relative took me to the slaughterhouse.

It was pretty grim. Some of the animals were so fearful. I remember having to drag a blood soaked hide out into the yard and it took two days of scrubbing to get rid of the smell. I was asked to move a wheelbarrow with the contents of the bowel in and couldn't even lift it.

The most disturbing thing was the heads ; it seemed the eyes were staring accusingly.

I've also been abroad with locals hunting boars for food in a jungle. The local butchering the boar was less disturbing. I guess it was the environment of a slaughterhouse seemed so unnatural.

Don't know if I could work in one full time but then again if it was the only way to put food on the table scruples would go out the window I expect.

[julybaby32]

The title, and what OP says they mean by the title, don't entire match up, but the title is more easily visible.

I think OP is being unreasonable in not asking for the title to be changed if it is not what they meant to put, because as it stands, I feel somewhat concerned that it will trigger attacks on slaughterhouse workers. Sometimes it doesn't take much...

[WhatTheWay]

I haven’t read all the messages. (Missed the drama! 🤔)

I worked in several abattoirs a long time ago. I worked on the line and I occasionally killed animals Including putting bolts through cows heads. (This was illegal as I wasn’t licensed but I was being supervised). There are other people apart from slaughter men who work in abattoirs such as meat inspectors and vets.

My experience didn’t put me off meat in the slightest. In fact it made it easier for me to eat it. I feel passionately about animals being transported long distances to be killed but, in the main, I am ok with the killing part.
In all the abattoirs I worked everyone’s main aim was to process the animals as quickly as possibly. To do that it’s best to keep the animals calm. Having spooked animals slows things down and can be dangerous. (It also not great for the meat) Obviously the animals could be distressed but it was kept to a minimum.
I never saw a single incident of deliberate cruelty and I spent about a year in the job. I very occasionally saw animals suffer Unnecessarily but it was more to do with someone making a mistake Rather than a deliberate action. The last thing anyone wanted was a half killed animal. That would present a massive health and safety issue. I’d Guess the percentage of animals killed ‘instantly’ wouldn’t be far off 100%. Having a bolt shot in your brain or having a massive electrical shock doesn’t leave much room for suffering.
The men I worked with were very hard working. Quite a few of them couldn’t read or write but that’s not surprising. A few were a bit dishonest at times . I saw quite a bit of thieving going on But other than that they were nice guys. They were all nice to me and although not perfect they were respectful of me being female and young.

There have been some shocking Cases of animal cruelty in abattoirs in the news but I genuinely didn’t experience anything like that. You have to wonder about how those places were managed.

I knew I wasn’t going to be working in an abattoir for more than a year or so so I know that gives a different slant on it but I positively enjoyed it. It’s physical work and there was a lot of comradery. I loved how fit I was. My arms were just incredible 😅 I’d say it was actually fun. I was always amazed at how hard the men all worked.

I’m surprised that anyone would suffer PTSS (?) from working in an abattoir though.

What’s actually cruel is that animals are transported hundreds even thousands of miles to be slaughtered. That is extremely cruel and should be stopped. I’d prefer to pay more and eat locally killed animals.

I probably only eat 100-200 grams of red meat a week but I enjoy it a lot.

[GetOffYourHighHorse]

How depressing WhatTheWay, I read your post hoping for a glimmer of, I don't know, regret? But we get 'my arms were just incredible 😅 I’d say it was actually fun' and talk of animals being 'processed'.

If it is the only way someone can earn a living then I feel sorry for them.

[HellloBambinos]

I wouldn't think badly of people who need to do what they can to put food on the table for their families. I do think badly of the meat industry in general though.

I've got absolutely nothing against humans eating meat in general. But I think all meat production should be free range and local. If that drives prices up and means it is more of a 'luxury' food then I think that's fair. I'm sure meat does have health benefits but not in the quantities we consume it. Cheap chicken nuggets, burgers etc don't have any real nutritional value but have a massive environmental and animal welfare cost.

But it's not the workers fault, it's the consumers fault and the fault of the industries who make money out of producing cheap low quality meat. And world leaders for not trying to drive down excessive meat production as an easy win against climate change!

[SadSisters]

I feel somewhat concerned that it will trigger attacks on slaughterhouse workers. Sometimes it doesn't take much...

I think it is extremely unlikely that there will be attacks on slaughterhouse workers because of one typo in a thread title on mumsnet.

For one thing, most people aren’t ready to commit GBH on a hair-trigger provocation. For another, even if those people do exist, they are hardly the Mumsnet demographic.

I think you can rest easy on this one...

[Iminaglasscaseofemotion]

How depressing WhatTheWay

Why is it depressing? Some people just don't have the same feelings around death than others. If people have to do that job, then would it not be better if they didn't live their life full of regret and guilt?

[Goosefoot]

@mrbob

Or in the US, corn is grown in excess because of the way it is subsidised, beef feed lots became a way to add value to the corn glut

I think there is an obvious solution to that rather than saying we have to have animals in feed lots...

That's not the point, the issue is that farming cows did not induce industrial soybean production so stopping eating meat isn't going to stop it. That is one of the myths of environmental veganism.

Additionally, industrial farming is a system problem. Not just one element but the whole thing

[SerendipityJane]

Humans aren't inherently farmers anyway. There isn't a farming gene we suddenly developed 10,000 years ago (indeed the spontaneous emergence of farming in different locations is a mystery). I don't think there are many - if any - vegetarian let alone vegan hunter gatherer societies ? (Certainly the Masai don't shun milk and blood).

(Not really following the finer detail of the thread, but felt like dropping that in there )

And having woken up and thought to themselves "This farming seems like a piece of piss", humans then set about clearing huge swathes of woodland and forest (with no regard for the effect on the wildlife) in order to have nice workable fields. Forest clearances that certainly caused a degree of climate change in the neolithic world.

Whilst farming might seem like a better life than that of a nomadic hunter gather, it certainly paves the way for some really nasty diseases that humans suffer. Mainly because there's little incentive with a stationary population to keep hosts alive for long ....

[Elsewyre]

I wouldn't say I think bad of them they do an unpleasant job so I dont have to.


I feel bad for them not about them

[Goosefoot]

@endlessginandtonic

we aren’t instinctively driven to hunt and kill our own food.

I'm not completely convinced this is true. Many humans have retained this urge and I am inclined to suspect that if it was the only way to acquire meat or fish more people would return to it.

Yeah, I don't know whoever thought this. If a person is hungry they will eat what they can get and it doesn't take long before they will be looking for higher protein and fat things like bugs.

[RiverMeadow]

@julybaby32* The title, and what OP says they mean by the title, don't entire match up, but the title is more easily visible.

I think OP is being unreasonable in not asking for the title to be changed if it is not what they meant to put, because as it stands, I feel somewhat concerned that it will trigger attacks on slaughterhouse workers. Sometimes it doesn't take much...*

I didn't realise I could ask for the title to be changed, my bad!

[Goosefoot]

@SerendipityJane

Humans aren't inherently farmers anyway. There isn't a farming gene we suddenly developed 10,000 years ago (indeed the spontaneous emergence of farming in different locations is a mystery). I don't think there are many - if any - vegetarian let alone vegan hunter gatherer societies ? (Certainly the Masai don't shun milk and blood).

(Not really following the finer detail of the thread, but felt like dropping that in there )

And having woken up and thought to themselves "This farming seems like a piece of piss", humans then set about clearing huge swathes of woodland and forest (with no regard for the effect on the wildlife) in order to have nice workable fields. Forest clearances that certainly caused a degree of climate change in the neolithic world.

Whilst farming might seem like a better life than that of a nomadic hunter gather, it certainly paves the way for some really nasty diseases that humans suffer. Mainly because there's little incentive with a stationary population to keep hosts alive for long ....

There aren't any whole societies that are vegan or vegetarian, which you would think their would be if it was actually more efficient. It would be advantageous in a marginal climate to be as efficient as possible with land use and what energy you gain from what you eat. And there have been plenty of societies where food production was marginal.

What you see is the opposite though. Those few groups that have been vegetarian have always been societies where there was excess (like ours) and typically the vegetarians are the elite who have wealth. They were also not the farmers in those societies, the farmers were poorer and depended on animal products and labour. So ultimately the vegetarians in those systems were still dependent on an agricultural system that included animal husbandry.

[RiverMeadow]

Does anyone happen to know why vets are present in the slaughterhouse?

[WhatTheWay]

GetOffYourHighHorse*.

You are correct in that I don’t regret working in an abattoir at all. The thought of regretting it wouldn’t crossed my mind. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I’m obviously ok about killing animals for food so why would I regret working in that industry. I didn’t see a single example of deliberate animal cruelty the whole time I was there. If I had I would have done something about it.
I see no reason why I should be coy about having enjoyed it either. I did enjoy it and I loved how fit I became. 💪🏻💪🏻It was great! I wouldn’t want to do it long term because it would be boring and repetitive but as a short term thing it was a good choice.
If people want to be vegetarians or vegans that’s up to them. It doesn’t bother me one way or another but I dont think there is any need for people to look down on people who work in abattoirs. It’s patronising.

Also, I referred to processing the animals because that is what happens at abattoirs. You process the animals. The killing bit Only takes seconds and Is only a tiny part of the whole process. What do you suggest you should call it. You kill the animals then you process them 🤷🏻‍♀️ The animals can’t understand English so I don’t think it matters to them what it’s called.

🥩🥩🥩

[Goosefoot]

What’s actually cruel is that animals are transported hundreds even thousands of miles to be slaughtered. That is extremely cruel and should be stopped. I’d prefer to pay more and eat locally killed animals.

Again though, this is a product of centralised industrial food production. Small abattoirs get closed down.

[WhatTheWay]

Seriously, if you are Bothered about animal cruelty then it’s not the abattoirs that are the issue it’s the transportation that causes the most distress to animals in my opinion. At present live animals can be transported hundreds and hundreds of miles.

[WhatTheWay]

Goosefoot. Sorry crossposted.

Exactly. The smaller abbatoirs aren’t cost effective so have been closed down. In some ways I can see the advantage of the huge super-abbatoirs as they are easier to regulate but that’s at the expense of the animals welfare.

[Carouselfish]

I have dropped a friend for having previously done that job.
Remember that really horrible man who won the lottery and spent it all on drugs, prostitutes and endless parties in about two years? He was a brain dead thug. Really scary guy. Anyway, once he was broke again he got a job in a slaughterhouse and has never been happier. Yeah. I bet he loves it.

If you've ever seen expose videos it's not the kind of place people who give a shit about animals suffering work. At best they are cold with zero empathy. At worst they are sadists who play football with the chickens and stab pigs I'm the back while riding them around for a laugh. Any RSPCA inspections are worthless because they tell them in advance when they're coming. They arent going to catch them in the act.

[Carouselfish]

And there are a lot of other ways to earn money FFS. It's a choice of a job.