Media releases

Photos shot by a Fiordland resident in early June show cows in mud-filled paddocks with no shelter. A complaint was made to the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), which failed to take any action after visiting the farm. Two weeks later, new photos taken at the same location again showed...

Almost double the number of cows were exported in the first five months of 2020 than in the same period in 2019. This increase has occurred while the Government is undertaking a review of the live-export trade, which Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor launched in June 2019. Read more

A 20-page report prepared by animal-rights organisation SAFE has been sent to Taranaki Regional Councillors. The report outlines why the live-export trade is not only bad for animal welfare, but also for Taranaki farmers. The report will arrive on Councillors’ desks on the eve of International Awareness Day to Ban...

SAFE and the New Zealand Animal Law Association (NZALA) will appear in court today. They will demonstrate that farrowing crates violate the Animal Welfare Act 1999. By filing legal proceedings, SAFE and NZALA wish to compel the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) and the Minister of Agriculture to act...

For the first time in New Zealand’s history the Animal Welfare Act 1999 will be tested in court. SAFE and the New Zealand Animal Law Association’s case against the Agriculture Minister and the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee will be heard on 8 June 2020 at the Wellington High Court....

Our waterways will be shattered with the sound of gunfire, as hunters injure thousands of birds when duck shooting opens this weekend. Projectiles released when a shotgun shell is fired can spread out to hit non-target birds flying nearby. These birds can lie in agony for hours until they finally...

Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor announced this morning that as part of this year’s budget the Government is to invest $5.4 million over four years to improve animal welfare. “It’s great to see the Government investing in animal welfare,” says SAFE CEO Debra Ashton. Read more

The Greyhound Racing New Zealand 2019 annual report illustrates that 293 dogs were euthanised in 2019 due to the industry’s failure to rehome them. A further 54 were euthanised at the track due to critical injuries sustained during racing. Greyhound racing is set to restart today, with races scheduled in...

Last week a member of ‘The Great NZ Lock Up Mouse Hunt Comp’ Facebook group posted an image of a dead cat that they had caught in a trap. Another member commented on the photo, gloating about the number of cats he had killed since January, which included 25 kittens....

The demand for plant-based protein is growing internationally, and the Government should seize the opportunity to include this in their economic stimulus package, says animal rights organisation SAFE. KPMG global head of agribusiness Ian Proudfoot yesterday told the Epidemic Response Committee that COVID-19 would accelerate a move towards lab-based meats...

SAFE is calling out Taranaki Regional Council (TRC) chief executive Basil Chamberlain for saying animal activists got it wrong. The chief executive claimed that Port Taranaki, which in January began facilitating the export of live animals, has an independent board of directors. Read more

The live animal export ship Yangtze Harmony arrived in Port Taranaki yesterday to collect 4,450 cows, expected to depart tomorrow. This is the third live export ship to berth in New Plymouth this year. SAFE and other local groups want to see the practice of live export come to an...

Farrowing crates, which confine mother pigs kept on factory farms, violate the Animal Welfare Act 1999, and for the first time in New Zealand history the Act will be tested in court. SAFE and the New Zealand Animal Law Association (NZALA) filed court proceedings against the Agriculture Minister and the...

The pig meat industry is struggling to store its meat while independent butchers are closed during the COVID-19 lockdown. “The Government needs to stop the insemination of sows if the industry is struggling to house pigs,” says Campaigns Manager Marianne Macdonald. Read more