RSPCA welcomes report which says CCTV in abattoirs has been effective
The RSPCA has welcomed a Government review which confirms introducing mandatory CCTV in abattoirs in England benefits animal welfare and offers assurances of welfare standards.
The review came nearly five years after mandatory CCTV was introduced in all abattoirs in England and just weeks after the Welsh Government announced it would soon be following suit, following tireless campaigning by the RSPCA.
Dr Marc Cooper, head of farm animals at the RSPCA, said: “The RSPCA pioneered the use of CCTV in slaughterhouses and the legal requirements introduced were based on the RSPCA’s farm animal welfare standards.
"We are, therefore, pleased to see that the evidence confirms that the installation of CCTV helps improve farm animal welfare at this critical time - vindicating this tireless campaign and its impact on animals.
“However, in the future we would also like to see CCTV extended to other parts of the farm animals' lives, as well as capitalising on advancements in Artificial Intelligence to further improve this technology, better safeguard farm animal welfare and to get to a point where there is never another incident of poor farm animal treatment.”
The review stated there is evidence to suggest CCTV has allowed for increased identification of incidences and enforcement.
This has provided an opportunity, the review reports, to highlight inappropriate behaviours, instigate further training or ensure that those who are unfit for their role can be, where necessary, removed from it. It also stated there has been a clear reduction in welfare non-compliance incidents since the introduction of the regulations.
Mandatory CCTV has also been integral to the Food Standards Agency's monitoring activities, and providing an extra layer of assurances for consumers, retailers and farm assurance providers regarding animal welfare standards in slaughterhouses.
The RSPCA mandated the installation of CCTV under its farm animal welfare standards in 2011, and it was subsequently implemented across all RSPCA Assured certified abattoirs, as the charity recognised how important this technology was to better safeguard animal welfare, and also how important it is to the public.
Public support was further demonstrated by the recent RSPCA Cymru campaign in Wales which saw more than 15,000 people supporting the campaign for Wales to follow suit and introduce mandatory CCTV.
