Thirty campaigners mount Valentine’s Day vigil at controversial Sheffield slaughterhouse

Yesterday, around 30 campaigners from Animal Aid and the Save Movement held origami hearts and banners reading “Stop The Slaughter” during a peaceful Valentine’s Day vigil outside the controversial N Bramall & Sons Ltd slaughterhouse at Oxspring, near Sheffield. Attendees were left shocked, however, when they made a grisly discovery: an open-air skip filled with dozens of severed sheep and cow heads, only meters away from a popular public footpath. Organisers have questioned whether the disposal of animal parts in such a way is in breach of regulations.

The vigil comes only weeks after the release of undercover filming taken at the slaughterhouse by Animal Aid, which shows the nightmarish scenes faced by animals on death row, including instances of lawbreaking. The distressing footage shows animals running in circles to evade being stunned, a water buffalo frantically trying to escape from a pen and also appears to show workers laughing as an animal lies on the slaughterhouse floor having been stunned.

Says Luke Steele, Farming and Slaughter Campaigns Manager, Animal Aid:

‘Around 30 campaigners held origami hearts and showed their compassion for animals during a peaceful Valentine’s Day vigil yesterday. The gruesome sights we encountered really reinforced the brutal and undignified end that these animals face, and why our presence was so necessary.

‘We want to ask caring people everywhere to have a heart for animals by simply swapping animal products for a meat-free alternative. Never before has it been so easy to enjoy a cruelty-free meal.’

Notes for Editors

• For further information and interviews, please contact Luke Steele on 01732 364546 or email luke@animalaid.co.uk
• Print quality photographs taken at the vigil are available, with full permission for republication granted (WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES)
• See our undercover film taken at N Bramall & Sons Ltd slaughterhouse