Video: ‘Truth About Vegans’ show sparks animal welfare clash
© Tim Scrivener A Channel 4 documentary has highlighted the expanding gulf in attitudes to meat production between farmers and vegans.
Farmers have reacted with fury to comments by campaigners such as Earthling Ed, calling for animal farms to be burned “to the ground”, while vegans say that the show gave too much time to an unrepresentative minority.
Warwickshire pig farmer Brian Hobill, who has been repeatedly targeted by protesters, has been forced to spend £50,000 on security after repeated break-ins on his farm, including by campaign group Viva!.
See also: Meat eaters or vegetarians: Who has the better arguments?
He told the show’s presenter, farmer’s son Morland Sanders, that the harassment has continued despite the farm being repeatedly exonerated by inspections from bodies including the RSPCA and Red Tractor.
“I think we have better conditions than most nursing homes,” said Mr Hobill, who said he was determined to carry on farming.
The show also featured Instagram influencer Cath Kendall, who equated eating lamb to eating a human baby.
“Just look at them. How can anyone justify killing sentient animals for a five-minute meal?”
Vegan activist and blogger, Cath Kendall explains why she thinks people should stop eating animal-based products.
Watch The Truth About Vegans, tonight at 10 on @Channel4 #Dispatches pic.twitter.com/detInV6LYr
— Channel 4 Dispatches (@C4Dispatches) January 2, 2019
Watch the video below to get a flavour of what the show was about if you missed it. You can watch the full episode on demand.
January is set to be full of anti-farming messages as animal rights activists and militant vegan take to social and the streets in protest of meat and dairy eaters.
Online, some called for tolerance of differing opinions
If your vegan then be vegan. The rest of us like meat, deal with it.
— Wolfe Of Parkhead ???????? (@ParkheadWolfe) January 3, 2019
I love animals, I mean really, they’re delicious. But I do think the farming industry does need improvement in the UK. #Dispatches #thetruthaboutvegans #FreeRangeShouldBeTheNorm
— lisa marie ?? (@prettyboots) January 2, 2019
I respect that people choose to be vegan but I really disagree with some vegan activists comparing people eating animals to the Jewish holocaust, I’m 10 mins into this program and I can’t bare to watch these quinoa worshiping weirdos #Thetruthaboutvegans
— Bee Green (@BeeGreen_x) January 2, 2019
Others watched in disbelief at the extreme comments made
“This is Auschwitz” the vegan activist says as she has broken into someone’s pig farm and cause a major biosecurity breach. #Pschyo #Dispatches pic.twitter.com/wK4JLygrGJ
Watching #Dispatches , more important than ever that we as farmers share our story of how we care for our animals to produce quality nutritional food #proudofdairy #teamdairy pic.twitter.com/bWTWJbVzEF
— Peter hynes??? ?#TeamHynes (@Peterhynes15) January 2, 2019
— Shane McAuliffe (@ShaneMcAuliffe1) January 2, 2019
This is really scary stuff . Earthling Ed says , I promise you the Last animal farm closed and burnt to the ground #dispatches @C4Dispatches #vegans at a public protest ??
— Gareth Wyn Jones (@1GarethWynJones) January 2, 2019
This woman on #dispatches is a fruit cake. These Vegans have nor right to force their views on other people and use violence on people who are just making a living.
— Kathleen J T (@KJTaylor_73) January 2, 2019
Comparing a pig farm to Auschwitz is completely deranged #dispatches
— Ben Eustice (@BenEustice1) January 2, 2019
Watching #Dispatches , more important than ever that we as farmers share our story of how we care for our animals to produce quality nutritional food #proudofdairy #teamdairy pic.twitter.com/bWTWJbVzEF
— Peter Hynes 🐄🥛🇮🇪 (@Peterhynes15) January 2, 2019
Livestock farmers and vegans found a rare slice of common ground after being united in their displeasure at the episode
I can’t stand militant vegans but that was a bit one sided and aggressive by Channel 4 there. Disagree with extremist tactics but that footage of pigs in a right state was horrendous and the farmers were very slippery in explaining it all. #dispatches
— Katie (@smurferino) January 2, 2019
Bit confused by #Dispatches. The vegans I know are just ordinary people eating the way they prefer to eat. How is focusing on a small minority giving us ‘the truth about vegans’?
— Mullies (@Mullies) January 2, 2019
How one sided is this programme? @Channel4 how about some actual scientific facts about the environmental impact of the farming industry, rather than encouraging the meat eating public to look down their noses at a small minority of vegans #thetruthaboutvegans #dispatches
— Hayley Schofield (@Hayleyseal) January 2, 2019