Today our team visited the Dutch poultry farm owned by Rob and Egbert Wingens. At the Wingens farm, broiler chicks are hatched inside the barn. This is rather unique as normally broiler chicks are hatched in hatcheries and then transported live to poultry farms to be fattened. By hatching the birds at the poultry farm there are some positive results: 1. There is no need … [Read more...] about Visit to Dutch poultry farm Wingens
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Serious welfare problems at a goat farm in the Netherlands
Today Eyes on Animals visited a goat farm in North Brabant. We parked our car and headed towards the farmers’ home to introduce ourselves to the farmer. Because the windows of the stable were open, we could see inside the stable while walking towards the main door. We immediately saw that the condition in the stable was alarming. A significant proportion of the kids … [Read more...] about Serious welfare problems at a goat farm in the Netherlands
Visit to one of the biggest goat milk farm in the Netherlands
On May 29th we made an unannounced visit to one of the biggest goat milk farms in the Netherlands: PeBe in Schaijk. Our impression of the stable was positive. There was a lot of daylight because the side windows were open and there were windows in the roof. This gave a lot of fresh air. The goats were kept on a thick layer of straw and were given quite a lot of space to … [Read more...] about Visit to one of the biggest goat milk farm in the Netherlands
Visit of Dutch poultry farm that burned down
Today we visited the poultry farm in Waddinxveen where yesterday morning a big fire broke out and 60,000 laying hens were killed. One of our inspectors is a specialist on barn-fires and in 2010 had conducted her thesis on the cause of barn fires and the suffering caused to animals. This research led to stricter fire-code regulations in the Netherlands for future new barns … [Read more...] about Visit of Dutch poultry farm that burned down
EonA workshop for dairy-industry players
On April 1st 2016 Eyes on Animals organized the workshop "From Good to Better: Small and big steps to improve a dairy farms' vitality". The purpose of the workshop was to connect people with each other and to inspire them with ideas to make changes on dairy farms to improve animal welfare. In total there were 37 participants from all over the country. They varied from … [Read more...] about EonA workshop for dairy-industry players
Visit to a calf-fattening farm using foster-mother cows, NL
Today an Eyes on Animals team visited a calf-fattening farm belonging to Jacob Beeker, in the Netherlands. Jacob runs a very unique and special farm. He buys the unwanted male jersey calves from an organic dairy farm. Small male calves are normally taken away from their mother right after birth and killed because they are considered to not have any economic value. At … [Read more...] about Visit to a calf-fattening farm using foster-mother cows, NL
Visit Hy-Care pig production unit MS Schippers Bladel
Today we have visited a Hy-Care pig production unit in Bladel. Hy-Care stands for hygiene and care, which are the two focal points for the ultramodern pig farm. On the farm, which is still in a prototype phase, pigs live in plastic containers. The containers are transported to the farmer on a sort of conveyor belt. In this way, issues such as castration, tail docking, … [Read more...] about Visit Hy-Care pig production unit MS Schippers Bladel
Visit of an organic hatchery, poultry farm and a small slaughterhouse
Today we were on the road with biodynamic eggfarmer Joost Slingenbergh. Joost wants to also raise broiler chickens in the near future. But first he is investigating where to buy the broiler chicks, and which slaughterhouse to send them to. He wants to be sure that the broilers are treated as humanely as possible, starting from the hatchery where he will purchase them from, … [Read more...] about Visit of an organic hatchery, poultry farm and a small slaughterhouse
Meeting with a group of farmers from CONO Beemster cheese
Yesterday, a team of EonA was invited to a meeting of dairy farmers who supply their milk to Cono, that uses the milk to make Beemster Cheese. For Cono the well-being of the cows have a very high priority. For example, 95% of the cows are grazing, for which Cono rewards the farmers with a bonus. We wanted to talk to them about the welfare of calves. Eyes on Animals is … [Read more...] about Meeting with a group of farmers from CONO Beemster cheese
EonA brings Marqt supermarket to Zonnehoeve dairy farm, NL
Eyes on Animals team visited Zonnehoeve dairy farm today together with Marqt, the Dutch "fair" supermarket chain. We brought Marqt and the Zonnehoeve dairy farmer together to see about the possibilities of selling the Zonnehoeve milk in their stores with an appropriate label indicating what makes it so special: the calves remain with their mothers for at least 3-4 months … [Read more...] about EonA brings Marqt supermarket to Zonnehoeve dairy farm, NL
