Tonight a team from Eyes on Animals was on the road inspecting poultry trucks. Around 22:00 we spotted an empty turkey truck from company Mantrans on the A50. We decided to follow the transporter in the hope of seeing both the catching and loading of the turkeys.
Towards the turkey farm the driver stopped at a weighbridge. The driver informed us that we would only be allowed to view the catching and loading of the birds with permission from both the owner and the catching crew. The catching crew (Den Ouden) is familiar with the work of Eyes on Animals and indicated that they had no objection to our presence. However, the turkey farmer (Raaijmakers) was not prepared to give EoA access to his farm due to biosecurity. We gave Raaijmakers our business card in the hope that they will be more transparent and allow EonA onto their premises in the future. We will also contact BAV, the sales organization for turkey farmers in the Netherlands, to discuss options in reducing stress, pain and injuries to the birds during catching and loading.
