Animal Activism Amid Pandemic Pt 2
I’m Bob Larson. Agriculture has had more hurdles to clear during the pandemic, but producers just keep on plugging away. One of those challenges is having to deal with animal activists that have seemingly ramped up their efforts.
Animal Ag Alliance Vice President, Hannah Thompson-Weeman believes the activists see the pandemic as an opportunity …
THOMPSON … “And, they also believe in the fact that there are theories about the COVID-19 pandemic that involve transmission from animals. They are trying to latch on to that message and claim that modern animal agriculture is somehow connected to the COVID-19 pandemic and will cause future pandemics, so we all need to go vegan if we want to protect ourselves, despite the fact that that has no grounding in science or reality, that it’s not going to stop them from trying to take advantage of a crisis.”
For them, Thompson-Weeman says the bleak pandemic job market has been a big plus …
THOMPSON … “There are a lot of activists who have been out of work for the past year and a half so they have more time to dedicate to activism, so we’ve seen continued protests at farms. They’re going to company and executive’s homes. They’re doing a lot of activity on plants. So, unfortunately, activism is still there, sometimes more aggressive than ever, even at a time of a pandemic.”
One of the biggest problems during the pandemic has been on the ground activists trespassing on farms and packing plants to disrupt operations.
