On Labour Day Monday a turkey farm in Southern Alberta had to deal with trespassing animal activists attempting to bring media attention to the way turkeys are raised. About 30 protesters descended on to Jumbo Valley Colony by camping out along the wall in the turkey barn. The protestors demanded for the media to be let into the barn to show what they called “poor living conditions.”
On Twitter, farmers expressed strong words for the activist trespassing and their tactics.
“It’s a shame that there is not more of a legal deterrent for this kind of blatant trespassing by activists,” says RealAgriculture founder, Shaun Haney.
On Monday night, Alberta’s Minster of Agriculture and Forestry, Devin Dreeshen tweeted about the incident:
This attack on a turkey farm is unacceptable.
Hardworking farmers and ranchers shouldn’t have to deal with harassment from illegal protesters.
They shouldn’t have to worry about people entering their work, interfering with their lives or threatening the health of their animals https://t.co/y4bu3RBZZr
— Devin Dreeshen (@DevinDVote) September 3, 2019
In a Global News video, Mark Tschetter of Jumbo Valley Colony mentions that he has nothing to hide in his free range system, challenging anyone to find a better way to raise turkeys.
Haney sums up this kind of activism by stating, “this is not about raising turkeys in improved ways, it’s about stopping animal agriculture all together. Agriculture must stand up to this kind of behaviour.”
