Blog Articles

We are closer than ever to a cage-free Aotearoa – but the mahi must continue

October 23rd, 2020

In the lead up to this year’s general election, SAFE supporters rallied together to make sure animals were on the agenda. Thanks to the amazing support for this campaign, we are closer than ever to freeing all hens from cages in Aotearoa. It’s been clear for a long time that...

Every glass of cow’s milk comes at the expense of the calf

October 22nd, 2020

In just over 200 years, New Zealand has gone from being a country with no cows to being the biggest exporter of dairy in the world. There are more cows in New Zealand than humans. Each one of these animals is a sensitive individual with their own unique experience of...

Photo credit: Geoff Reid

Intensive Winter Grazing harms much more than our clean, green Aotearoa

October 20th, 2020

In winter 2019, shocking images of cows up to their knees in mud, unable to lie down and rest, were in the media. Aerial footage revealed extensive environmental degradation in parts of Otago and Southland. A Southland kindergarten was even forced to close when runoff from a nearby farm washed...

Have you bought these common myths about dairy?

October 14th, 2020

For most of our lives, advertisements have told us that cow’s milk is good for us, that we need it for strong bones, or if we are to have any chance of making New Zealand’s Olympic team. But is this backed up by science? Or is it just clever advertising?...

Photo credit: Jinki Cambronero

Hens deserve a life worth living

October 8th, 2020

Like many people caring for animals, my mornings start with a feeding and cleaning routine. With over 30 hens, the vast majority of whom arrived featherless and skinny after serving an 18-month sentence in an intensive farm, the daily routine is well-planned and efficiently executed. The hens rush out...

1.8 Million Reasons You Should Give Up Dairy

October 6th, 2020

Bobby calves are one of the more unpalatable truths of the dairy industry. Autumn/winter calving is the busiest time of the year for ‘bobby calf disposal,’ as it is called in the industry. A bobby calf is a four to 10 day old newborn calf, who is not needed by...

Five reasons you should take the Dairy-Free Challenge

September 30th, 2020

If you’ve been thinking about ditching dairy and would like a little help to get started, we have just the thing for you. It’s fun, easy and FREE! The Dairy-Free Challenge is an exciting email series that covers everything from getting started to delicious recipes, dairy-free products and tips galore!...

Horrific conditions on missing live export ship revealed

September 4th, 2020

The Gulf Livestock 1 issued a distress signal at 4.45am on the 2nd September (NZT) from the East China Sea, an area effected by Typhoon Maysak. The ship had left Napier on 14th August, and was carrying 5,700 cows and 43 crew members, including two New Zealanders. At 4pm a...

Meat the Family, TVNZ

Meat the next family – Reality TV continues to disappoint

September 2nd, 2020

Last week on TVNZ’s Meat the Family, we watched in horror as a UK family of four cared for chickens as pets for three weeks before they were forced to make a tough decision – commit to vegetarianism to save the chickens’ lives or send them to the slaughterhouse and...

Getting animals on the agenda this election

August 27th, 2020

Animal issues have fallen off the political radar in 2020, and there is no sign that any of the political parties are focused on making positive and significant improvements to animals’ lives. Colony cages will therefore only be banned after the election if animal activists step up to carry out...

Slaughterhouse or sanctuary? – Reality TV at its worst

August 26th, 2020

The new TV show ‘Meat the Family’ aired its first episode in New Zealand on Tuesday 25 August. ‘Meat the Family’ has replaced the delightful series ‘The Dog House’ on TVNZ 1. Last night, along with many other animal lovers who were expecting to watch a heart-warming show about dog...

Are soy flat whites bad for the planet? Read on as we debunk the myth

August 18th, 2020

If you enjoy a soy flat white or a tofu stir fry, you may have already heard flimsy arguments about why soy is ‘bad’. So it wasn’t surprising to see this article from The Sustainable Food Trust (who, it’s important to point out is largely made up of farmers) popping...

Five reasons why winter is the perfect time to try plant-based

August 14th, 2020

If you’ve been thinking about going plant-based for some time, we have some good news for you – winter is the best and easiest time to embrace a plant-based diet! Okay, so there’s never a wrong time to switch to a plant-based diet, but making the switch now, while the days...

What’s really in that bucket of KFC?

April 30th, 2020

Absence is said to make the heart grow fonder, but in the case of the high demand for KFC at the end of the Level 4 COVID-19 restrictions, I wonder if the people who queued in their masses to get their first post-lockdown takeaway really knew what they were eating....

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