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Abattoir Sobeval: L214 broadcasts emails that embarrass the Ministry of Agriculture

2020-02-25T21:36:06.865Z


The association demands the resignation of Didier Guillaume, after having taken note of e-mails exchanged at the ministry, recognizing "non-conformities" within the abattoir of Dordogne.


Did the Minister of Agriculture Lie? In any case, this is what L214 said on Tuesday. The association has published e-mails on its site which have been exchanged between senior officials of the Ministry of Agriculture concerning the Sobeval slaughterhouse in Boulazac (Dordogne). A few days earlier, Thursday February 20, L214 had published images shot in November and December 2019 in this calf slaughterhouse, which belongs to the Dutch group VanDrie.

Also read: Slaughter of calves: L214 unveils a new shock video, the slaughterhouse files a complaint against the association

The content of the emails sent suggests that the ministry recognizes many "non-conformities" in this slaughterhouse, contrary to what the official communication suggested, namely that animal welfare was respected. The Sobeval abattoir in Boulazac - the largest in the Dordogne with 3,400 calves slaughtered per week - is authorized for standard types of slaughter, i.e. 70% of its activity, when Kosher and Halal represent 30%. However, L214 denounced multiple violations of the law in this establishment. The images show, for example, signs of the calves regaining consciousness at slaughter stages where they should be completely unconscious.

The Minister of Agriculture, Didier Guillaume, however said on Europe 1 this Sunday that " the facts and the pictures " were not proven. " The images are taken over several months or several years, are pasted in relation to each other, " said the minister, before adding that he had immediately carried out " checks" showing " that respect for well-being animal "was there. A speech similar to that of the prefecture of the Dordogne, three days earlier. " At the first viewing of the association's videos, there is no evidence of non-compliance with the regulations, " said the prefecture in a press release.

"Elements of concrete language"

Except that the internal emails to the ministry of agriculture, published this Tuesday by L214 come to contradict the communication of the minister and the prefecture. These compromising emails were exchanged between senior ministry officials the day before and the same day the video appeared, according to the association. They were sent " by mistake " to an association, says Le Figaro Sébastien Arsac, spokesperson and co-founder of L214. “This association had written to the Ministry of Agriculture to demand accountability. She is used to interacting with them. A person got the wrong recipient and he received these emails which he forwarded to us ”.

The first exchanges in this loop of emails bringing together a dozen people, date from February 19. The day before the publication of L214 images therefore. According to the association, the ministry's services were warned by a journalist and had " the investigation video but also the press release, the report and the rushes ". " We need concrete edl for tonight ... ", it is written in an e-mail sent in the morning of February 19. The "edl" are the language elements used in communication to respond to the press in particular. They are prepared in advance to ensure the consistency of a speech.

The association published emails that were allegedly exchanged between senior officials from the Ministry of Agriculture. L214

At the end of the day, another email attaches a proposal for language elements. It is mentioned that these elements were transmitted to the prefecture of Dordogne and to the veterinary services of the department (DDPP), but also that they could be sent to Interbev - the National Interprofessional Association of Cattle and Meat - and to the Federation of Wholesale Meat Industries and Trade (FedeV). According to this correspondence, the strategy adopted would be to insist on the fact that a " full inspection was carried out in 2019 ", that " the NC [Non-conformities] noted in November " have since been corrected but also that " the video cannot be dated ”.

The emails published on the L214 website mention the communication put in place by the ministry after the publication of a video in a calf slaughterhouse. L214

The last email revealed by L214 is however the most embarrassing since it suggests that the services of the ministry are well aware of the "non-conformities" presented in the video. I made the list of undeniable, even major NCs noted! ", It is written in this email published on February 20 in the morning.

This email suggests that the department would recognize that there could be "non-conformities" in the Sobeval slaughterhouse. L214

L214 again called for " the immediate closure of the Sobeval slaughterhouse ". The association has filed a complaint with the public prosecutor of Périgueux for " serious abuse " against animals. Sobeval has filed a defamation complaint against the association.

L214 also calls on Minister Didier Guillaume to resign. " It's very worrying ," says Sébastien Arsac. This shows that he is able to lie publicly, we no longer have confidence ”. At present, the Ministry of Agriculture has not responded to requests from Le Figaro .

Source: lefigaro

All business articles on 2020-02-25

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