TIR explains the legal and practical reality of Swiss pig farming

Agricultural organisations frequently refer to the strict Swiss animal welfare laws. State-subsidised advertising of happy animals is intended to stimulate the desire for meat and counteract any guilty conscience. The Foundation for the Animal in the Law (TIR) is deeply concerned about the legal basis and enforcement in Switzerland - and paints a completely different picture to that of advertising and the industry.

November 18,2024

The standard of Swiss pig farming can be described as modest at best. In an international comparison, animal welfare regulations in this country may be somewhat better - but the vast majority of pigs in Switzerland are still denied a life appropriate to their species. The minimum legal requirements are so low that even the basic needs of the animals are not met in any way: The actual situation is a far cry from optimal animal husbandry.
 
Although this contradicts the principles of the Animal Welfare Act, which are intended to protect the welfare and dignity of animals, the systematic disregard of animal needs is also commonplace in Switzerland because the Animal Welfare Ordinance always represents a compromise between economically interesting animal use and animal welfare. For example, the Animal Welfare Ordinance does not stipulate that pigs should be allowed to roam or be provided with bedding. Similarly, pigs weighing 100 kilograms may still be kept on less than one square metre.

In addition, the enforcement of these minimum requirements does not hold. Research by organisations such as Tier im Fokus or Verein gegen Tierfabriken regularly reveals drastic violations of the minimum requirements. However, the  annual analyses conducted by TIR show that such criminal charges usually remain without consequences. In 2017, the TIR focussed its investigation on pig farming identified numerous problems in the areas of controls, enforcement of animal welfare regulations and sanctioning of violations. No improvement of the situation has been identified to date.

It is therefore part of the often concealed reality of industrial Swiss pig farming that sometimes apathetic, maladjusted, sometimes sick and injured animals have to live in filthy and excrement-smeared concrete pens with very little daylight and very little opportunity for activity, and are crammed into very confined spaces. This is in clear contrast to advertising, for example by Proviande, the industry organisation of the Swiss meat industry, which receives several million francs from the state coffers every year to make consumers believe that pigs and other farmed animals are treated with a high degree of respect. The ‘Swiss Meat’ advert shows beautiful images of extensive meadows and fields, which in reality the animals are hardly ever allowed to enter, and of pigs in fresh layers of straw – a reality that can only be found in very few stables.

According to industry figures, around half of the pigs reared in Switzerland are kept in accordance with the IP-Suisse standard This label stipulates, among other things, a dry, non-perforated (i.e., without holes or crevices) lying surface that covers the floor. However, the fact that something as basic as a comfortable lying surface is an essential component of this label already shows the low level of the husbandry standard. In practice, the implementation of the requirements in relation to bedding is also generally - apart from a few laudable exceptions - only minimal, i.e., barely covering the floor and not, as shown in the advert, with thick layers of straw in which the animals can dig and burrow.

A motion submitted in 2020 by Green National Councillor Meret Schneider (Motion 20.3648), which called for bedding for all pigs as a supplement to the minimum requirements, was rejected in parliament. The ignorance of politicians and the industry towards the basic needs of the pigs we use results in massive impairment of the welfare of these sensitive animals and disregards the protection of animal dignity enshrined in both the law and the constitution.

This legally recognises that animals have an intrinsic value that must be respected when dealing with them. Today's intensive farming of so-called farm animals is a prime example of the excessive instrumentalisation of animals. Their value is defined almost exclusively by their performance and their economic benefit to humans. As soon as an animal reaches its slaughter weight or its fertility declines, it is usually killed because it is no longer profitable to keep it. This degrades the animals to mere commodities and largely disregards their natural needs and behaviour. The fundamental principle of respect for animal dignity is therefore not adequately taken into account by the existing husbandry regulations.

Free-range farming of pigs is far better suited to the animal's needs, although this is only found in Switzerland in exceptional cases. For example, the Albert Koechlin Foundation researches the natural needs of pigs in its ‘SchweinErleben’ project and sensitises school classes and the general public to the fact that pigs like to wallow and dig in the forest floor. KAGfreiland, Silvestri AG and other institutions, as well as individual farms, are also in favour of keeping pigs close to nature.

However, there are strict limits to free-range husbandry: Both the water protection regulations and the space that the animals would need to actually fulfil their needs only permit this form of husbandry to a certain extent. In other words, it is not possible to provide the approximately 1.3 million pigs currently kept in Switzerland with free-range conditions. It is therefore imperative that this discussion takes place in the context of meat consumption which is, without a doubt, too high in Switzerland. Too high to offer the animals a species-appropriate life, too high to ensure the protection of the environment and also too high in in terms of health. Objectively speaking - even without taking animal suffering into account - a drastic reduction in the consumption of animal products is therefore urgently needed.

From an ethical point of view, the dignity of animals must be revisited: Even a free-range system is subject to certain economic interests and ultimately involves the killing of sensitive creatures whose intelligence and emotionality are still barely understood. Research into the personality of these animals is also still in its infancy. However, sanctuaries and sanctuaries that take in these fascinating animals beyond their intended use and get to know them as individuals, already know today that every single animal has a unique character - just as is the case with us humans.

TIR appeals to all consumers - especially in view of the festive season - to be well informed and to shop in an animal-friendly way. It calls on legislators and regulators to finally enact legal provisions that are geared towards the needs of animals and do not automatically prioritise the interests of humans.

Further information (in German):