Letter: Animal products

Published on Friday 7 January 2011 15:43

Dioxins aren't the only contaminants entering the food chain via intensive animal farming (your report, 7 January). Animal products frequently carry toxins because of the unsanitary conditions in which the animals are raised.

Eggs are a common carrier of salmonella, and this new scare is simply another example of why people should drop all animal products from their diet. This is particularly noticeable at a time when we are seeing swine flu sweep the country.

Hens which are treated as mere egg-producing machines are smart and sensitive animals. Deprived of the most basic necessities, they will never build nests or raise their young, and most never set foot outside or breathe fresh air until they are loaded onto a lorry destined for the abattoir. By treating animals as units of industrial production rather than living, sensitive beings, we inevitably reap what we sow.

Abi Izzard

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Foundation

London