On Tuesday in Shine, North Carolina, a barn holding over 1,000 pigs caught on fire. Multiple fire departments were called to put out the blaze, but only 200 pigs survived. The cause of the fire is under investigation and hasn’t yet been determined.
This is not an isolated incident. Three weeks ago, 1,100 pigs died in a fire at a factory farm in Ohio, while 70,000 chickens died in a fire at a California factory farm in mid-July. So far, in 2024, nearly 1.5 million farmed animals have died in barn fires, according to data compiled by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), a US nonprofit organization.
More than 8 million farmed animals have perished in barn fires over the last decade, but animal advocates believe the true number is much higher because reporting requirements vary by state. Among the factory farming complex’s many cruelties, these deaths are little noted but disturbingly common.
Factory farming should be banned. Food is not worth that cruelty, even if the fires have nothing to do with the farm itself.
All that suffering
No fire suppression systems are required for livestock operations, although I do wonder if commercial operations are more safe than family farms where budget and age of structures could be a concern.
Came here to see dead cops, got bacon. Poor piggies. 😭
“I love the smell of burning pigs in the morning. It smells like… Breakfast.”
Mmmm luau time! Poor piggies.
It’s those fudging commies again!
