James Cromwell, who starred in the classic film Babe, has pleaded with the Minister for Agriculture to halt plans for exporting live pigs to China.
As reported in The Irish Times, the Oscar nominee, whose screen credits include The Green Mile and Spider-Man, has written to Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue condemning the export of live animals as a “stain on humanity”.
This comes following the recent announcement from Mr McConalogue that an agreement had been reached with Chinese authorities to pave the way for exporting breeding pigs from Ireland to China.
China has been increasing exports of breeding pigs after the country's herd was decimated by the deadly African swine fever.
In his letter condemning live exports, Cromwell expressed his shock at hearing the Governments plans to ship pigs to China.
“I had the great privilege and pleasure of learning about pigs when I starred in the movie Babe. They’re fascinating animals who possess a remarkable capacity for love and joy – as well as sorrow,” said Cromwell.
“I was therefore shocked to hear about your plans to export these wonderful animals from Ireland to China, where they’ll be used as breeding machines. And I urge you, on behalf of kind people everywhere, to reconsider,” he continued.
Cromwell argued that treating pigs as cargo is both unnecessary and cruel, and it would cause immense stress to these sensitive animals.
“Worse still, whatever protections they might have in Ireland fly completely out the window when they arrive in China where there are no laws to protect animals on farms.”
He concluded by saying that “pigs deserve better than this” and he pleaded with Mr McConalogue to “see that shipping pigs abroad does not align with the friendly spirit Ireland is known for”.
He asked the Minister for Agriculture to “do the right thing and reverse this decision. Better still, ban the live export trade – a stain on humanity – entirely”.
