Animals used for Food

Last updated 30 November 2021

Abattoirs / Slaughterhouses

Meat, dairy and egg products, and some entertainment industries such as horse or greyhound racing, involve the slaughtering (killing) of animals, whether directly for human consumption, or as “waste products” of the industry. Most of this killing is carried out at slaughterhouses, also known as abattoirs, which operate primarily for human consumption. Animals deemed unfit or unsuitable...

Broiler (Meat) Chickens

Broiler chickens, used for their meat, live miserably in appalling conditions. Broiler chickens are sweet, affectionate birds, known to purr in delight when they are given head scratches. In the year 2018/19, 653 million chickens were slaughtered in Australia alone, while globally 66 billion chickens are slaughtered every year. Chickens are the largest number of intensively farmed animals in Aust...

Camels

The camels found in Australia are Dromedary camels. Being social creatures, camels live in groups known as herds, and are known to blow in one another’s faces as a greeting.   History of camels in Australia Camels were first introduced to Australia in the 1840s to be used to aid exploration and development of arid areas1. However, the arrival of rail and motor transport in the 193...

Cattle (Beef)

Note: the words ‘cow’ and ‘cattle’ are used interchangeably in this article to refer to both male and female bovines. Cow is technically a female, however there is no singular word to refer to cattle that is gender neutral, as a result cow is often used to refer to singular cattle, male or female. Cows are gentle giants, each having their own unique personality and trait...

Dairy

Deer

Deer are commercially farmed in Australia for venison (meat) and velvet (antlers).  There are some 45,000 deer living on approximately 1,400 farms across Australia[1]. The main species used are: Red Deer (Cervus elaphys) Fallow Deer (Dama dama) Canadian Elk or Wapiti (Cervus canadensis) The industry’s peak body is the Deer Industry Association of Australia (DIAA)[2]. The D...

Ducks

Increasing evidence is emerging that birds are intelligent, complex creatures, and ducks are certainly no exception to this. Research has shown that ducklings possess the ability to grasp the concept of ‘same’ and ‘different’ as well as being capable of abstract thinking. These abilities have been attributed to many highly intelligent animals, including parrots, crows, huma...

Eggs

Egg-laying hens are highly social animals with complex cognitive abilities, who value their lives like we do. Chickens possess the ability to distinguish 100 faces of other chickens, and form complex social structures within their flock known as ‘pecking orders’. Hens love to spend time in the sun and keep themselves clean by dust bathing in patches of dirt. Studies have found that chi...

Emus

Emus – Introduction Emus are primarily farmed in Australia for their meat, skin and in particular, their oil.  A very small quantity of carved eggs and emu feathers are also sold. The first emu farm began in Western Australia in 1970, however emu farming began operating commercially in 1987 when relevant legislation was passed. The first slaughtering of the farmed emus happened in 1990...

Fish and marine life

There is ever-emerging evidence that fish are complex, intelligent and sentient beings. Fish are capable of time-place learning where they link events with both location and time of occurrence. Animals, humans and otherwise use this to decide to visit or avoid places at certain times, based on their previous experiences.  For many, fish are difficult animals to relate to and empathise with...

Goats

Goats are playful and friendly animals that are often curious and keen to interact with humans. Goats are able to recognise the faces of their friends. In Australia, goats are farmed for their milk and meat. Naturally the lifespan of a goat is 15 to 20 years. Number of goats slaughtered in 2018: it is recorded that 1.65 million goats were slaughtered in 2018 in Australia, however this does not in...

Kangaroos

Kangaroos are killed in Australia for meat, but they are caught from the wild rather than farmed. There is much debate even among the industry about the ethics of doing this as the slaughter of the wild kangaroos is done by shooting them in the head with a rifle. In 2008 Australia was given a quota to kill 3,242,524 kangaroos. The majority of the meat (70%) is exported out of Australia, the majori...

Knackeries

Animals deemed unfit or unsuitable for human consumption are killed at facilities called knackeries, often for pet food. 

Live Export

Australia exports over 3 million live sheep, goats and cattle every year. Kuwait receives 21% of Australia's live export, Indonesia receives 20% of all exported livestock and Qatar receives 18%. http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/Latestproducts/7215.0Main%20Features2Jun%202017?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=7215.0&issue=Jun%202017&num=&view=http://www.l...

Pigs

Pigs are highly social, curious, and intelligent animals who want to live just as much as we do. Pigs communicate with one another and have more than 20 recognised vocalisations. Pigs are also extremely clean animals; when given sufficient space pigs will take special care not to soil where they eat and sleep. Sows are incredibly maternal, building nests from their surrounding environment for thei...

Rabbits

Summary of Rabbit Meat farms in Australia Up until 1987, there was a complete ban on rabbit farming in Australia. In 1987, Western Australia changed its legislation to lift that ban. New South Wales and Victoria followed suit. Before the bans were lifted, 2.7 million rabbits a year were estimated to have been hunted in Australia in the wild up until the early 1990s. In 1996, The Australian gover...

Rendering

Saleyards

Sheep

Despite their reputation as being simple “followers”, sheep are intelligent animals with incredible memories. In nature, sheep travel long distances in complex, close-knit families. Each herd will cooperate and stay together for survival and protection, similar to many other animal species who travel together in packs. Just like dogs, a sheep can learn their own name. Far beyond this,...

Turkeys

Turkeys are extremely affectionate birds, who form strong bonds with their families and flock mates. They are known to purr in a way similar to cats when they feel relaxed and have been observed being playful among their flock. In the animal agriculture industry, turkeys are subject to horrific lives from breeding through to slaughter and each step in between.  5 million turkeys are slaug...