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EmailIphone Application    Posted: 2019-05-08
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Amazon to change pig 'swill feeding' advert
Swill feeding has been banned in the UK since 2001.
Move follows complaint by the National Pig Association

The National Pig Association (NPA) has welcomed a promise from Amazon to change an advert featuring a pig being fed kitchen scraps.

The advert in question is for the Amazon Echo Dot and has appeared in cinemas across the UK. In a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), NPA chief executive Zoe Davies said the practice is classed as swill feeding, which has been banned in the UK since 2001.

She called on the ASA to remove the advert, ‘‘keeping ASF and other awful notifiable diseases out of the UK pig population".

A complaint was also made to the ASA by vet Duncan Berkshire of the Pig Veterinary Society to remove the footage "from all media immediately".

On Friday (3 May), the ASA contacted Duncan and Zoe informing them that they would be taking their complaints seriously.

The ASA wrote: "We think you have a valid point and, with a view to acting quickly, we instructed Amazon to change their ad. We asked them to remove the scene in question, and I’m pleased to advise that we have received an assurance from them that they will make that change should the ad appear again.”

Zoe said: "This is an excellent result. We are really pleased the ASA understood the seriousness of our complaint and reached the same conclusion. We also welcome what appears to be Amazon's promise to remove the footage from future adverts. And we hope this sends out a message to other media outlets and advertisers.

"We also stressing yet again how important it is that all pig owners adhere to the swill feeding - and that means not feeding kitchen waste, even if it doesn't contain meat." 

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RSPCA braced for ‘hectic hedgehog month’

News Story 1
 The RSPCA says that it is bracing itself for a ‘hectic hedgehog month’ after calls to the charity about the creatures peaked this time last year.

More than 10,000 calls about hedgehogs were made to the RSPCA’s national helpline in 2018, 1,867 of which were in July. This compares with just 133 calls received in February of the same year.

Evie Button, the RSPCA’s scientific officer, said: “July is our busiest month for hedgehogs. Not only do calls about hedgehogs peak, but so do admissions to our four wildlife centres as members of the public and our own officers bring in orphaned, sick or injured animals for treatment and rehabilitation.” 

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ASF traces found in seized meat at NI airport

More than 300kg of illegal meat and dairy products were seized at Northern Ireland’s airports in June, DAERA has revealed.

A sample of these were tested at the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute, resulting in the detection of African swine fever DNA fragments.

DAERA said that while the discovery does not pose a significant threat to Northern Ireland’s animal health status, it underlines the importance of controls placed on personal imports of meat and dairy products. Holidaymakers travelling overseas are being reminded not to bring any animal or plant products back home.