The footage is disturbing.
The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed, has said the alleged treatment of Irish cattle by French cattle handers in Cherbourg is appalling.
The abuse of the Irish dairy calves was detailed in an investigation by animal welfare groups Eyes on Animals and L214, an investigation which trailed 23 Irish livestock trucks and inspected the conditions the animals were exposed to between 14-17 March this year.
The disturbing videos observed calves being mistreated and showed a number of calves collapsing in pain and dragging their hind legs along the floor, unable to get back up. One employee, meanwhile, threw a calf to a concrete floor and jumped on his fragile body with full force while other employees looked on.
The video has been widely condemned by animal rights groups including the ISPCA, who said such treatment “must not be tolerated”.
Speaking to Patricia Messinger on C103’s Cork Today show, Minister Creed condemned the treatment of the animals but also noted the workers involved were not Irish workers..
“Well my view, first of all in terms of the video is, it’s appalling and those that are involved, I understand, have been arrested by French authorities,” Creed said.
“That’s in process now and it’s right and proper and I hope they face the full rigours of the law.
“Live exports is a critically important part of the agricultural industry in Ireland and I am a supporter of [them], but I’ve always made the point I am a supporter of highly regulated welfare in this industry and have not compromised one iota not withstanding pressure from certain quarters to do so.
“We operate a higher system of animal welfare regulations in the transport of cattle and calves than is the minimum requirement from the EU. And we do so because it is important to us, and I believe it is possible to have a highly regulated animal welfare friendly live export trade and this department and I will have no truck with with anyone who breaches these regulations.
“But it must be said in the context of the recent video, that was not involving Irish individuals, it was an isolated incident in a lairage facility in Cherbourg.“
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