Fighting for the withdrawal of the meat industry in Oldenburger Land

This summer, we would like to take our united protest to the center of the German meat production industry, Oldenburger Land. Larger and equally determined – especially as the meat industry continues to profit uninterrupted. Through multiply-day activities between 23 and 27 September 2022 we will take a stand against the meat industry: with a large scale initiative and further individual protests, we will be rebellious and creative for a radical change in the agriculture and nutrition systems.

Meat and poultry industry: a system of exploitation and destruction

In the meat industry there is a multitude of problems, among them: land theft and hunger in the Global South, exploitation of the majority of migratory workers, and from economical farmers massive greenhouse gas emissions, environmental destruction, and the oppression and murder of animals. This industry is vulnerable where it feels the most comfortable: in the triangle between Bremen, Oldenburg and Osnabrück. In “Oldenburger Land”, there are rows upon rows of feedlots, slaughterhouses, wurst factories and feed mills. The biggest profiteers of this industry are here: the large meat corporations, above all, PHW (Wiesenhof), Vion, Tönnies und Westfleisch.

Fighting together for a unified agricultural shift

This year, with your support, we are making the large spectrum of social catastrophes, in which the meat corporations and industry are responsible for, transparent. We will expose the interconnected exploitation of humans, animals, and nature. This link is a direct result of capitalistic production. We are attaching ourselves to these fights for emancipation and are arranging many varied, colorful, and dedicated activities and protests.

The protests of the last years have made a difference, but we must prevent the meat industry from using surface-level changes and the mere appearance of adjustments to perpetuate harmful practices, such as removing and cancelling factory contracts, climate change and “animal welfare” protections or supply-chain laws. Instead, we want to make sure that there is no way to get around a complete termination of the meat industry. We will achieve this through comprehensive and extensive systemic change and transformation: a good life for all, even animals, within planetary capacity and particularly by excepting responsibility in the global north.

Call to Action

We are calling all to connect with our initiative in the summer. Come to the planned large scale protest and plan your own in protest in Oldenburger Land. Only together can we manage the withdrawal from the meat production industry. Let us create an example in the fight for an ecological nutrition system and agriculture transformation!

The activities will take place from 23 to 27 September. We will be releasing more detailed information relating to the time, meeting place, and activity formats at a later date. Stay connected and join us in the creation of the activities for the summer. 

Contact and Information

Contact: https://gemeinsam-gegen-die-tierindustrie.org // mail@gemeinsam-gegen-die-tierindustrie.org

The authorities in the district of Vechta in Lower Saxony are trying to prevent our protest camp against PHW/Wiesenhof. All areas proposed by us for the planned camp are currently rejected. Thereby our event is protected by the basic right to assemble.

We consider this as an attack on the freedom of assembly – and we will not be stopped! In any case, our camp will take place. You can find current information about the camport here.

We have prepared the camp for months and registered it early. Everything is ready, we have worked out a hygiene concept. The lack of planning security provoked by the authorities in Vechta is unacceptable, not least with regard to infection control!

Therefore: Now more than ever: Mobilize to the camp, sign our appeal, scandalize with us the outrageous tactics of the local authorities and above all: Come to the camp and demonstrate with us for a different agriculture!

At the end of September, a hot late summer is on the horizon in the Rhineland: from September 23 – 28, “Ende Gelände“ mobilizes into the lignite mining area, and in the same period (September 24 – 27) the international Forest Anti-Spe Days 2020 will take place in the Hambacher Forst! We call on you to come with us to the Rhineland and participate in the actions! Either at Ende Gelände or in the Hambacher Forst during the Days against Speciesism.

We will participate in the program with workshops in the Hambacher Forst and present us and our plans for the Mass Action 2021 to the international activists.

More information about the Forest Anti-Spe Days can be found on the official homepage:
https://forestantispedays.noblogs.org/deutsch/https://forestantispedays.noblogs.org/english/

From our today’s press release:

250 people followed the call of the alliance “gemeinsam gegen die Tierindustrie” to protest against the Tönnies Group’s claims for damages against activists. The company demands 40,000 Euros from 30 animal rights and climate justice activists* of the action group “Tear Down Tönnies”, who blocked the slaughterhouse for several hours in October 2019.

In compliance with the minimum distance and equipped with mouth-nose-covering, the demonstrators* moved loudly shouting from the market place in Kellinghusen to the Tönnies slaughterhouse. With chants like “We are loud and we are here – for the liberation of humans and animals” they made their demands unmistakably clear.

Several speakers described the precarious and unworthy conditions of the workers in the slaughterhouses and pointed out the responsibility of the meat industry for the destruction of natural resources and thus the human-made climate change. The needs of animals and their disregard by the meat industry were also addressed.

In a greeting message of the campaign “We don’t shut up, we shut down” it was explained how activists are fighting against the power company RWE, which also demands compensation for damages from climate justice activists* for an action against coal mining.

The group Tear Down Tönnies has started an anti-repression campaign against Tönnies. A call for donations follows, which you are welcome to forward!

Furthermore: We support the activists* and call for a demonstration in front of the then blocked Tönnies slaughterhouse in Kellinghusen on Saturday (29.08.): https://gemeinsam-gegen-die-tierindustrie.org/aufruf-und-infos-demo-kellinghusen-29-08/

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On 21.10.2019 we, the action group “Tear down Tönnies” blocked the Tönnies slaughterhouse “Thomsen” in Kellinghusen. For almost twelve hours we prevented the regular slaughter and the killing of several thousand animals. The goal of the action was to draw attention to the precarious working conditions, the endless animal suffering and the strong climate and environmental pollution caused by the animal industry. Now Tönnies demands a high 5-digit amount of money as compensation for the lost profit and expenses incurred.

To a company, which makes its profit with the exploitation of humans, animals and environment, are we to pay compensation? We see it differently. If someone has to pay compensation, it is the corporations who are responsible for climate change, extinction of species, land theft and the destruction of our natural resources. And not those who take action against it.

Therefore we will take legal action against Tönnies’ claims. For this we are dependent on your solidarity and support. Civil lawsuits are unfortunately very expensive. That’s why we need your support to finance the process. We are happy about every support, be it a donation, a solidarity action or the distribution of our call for donations.

The attempt to stop protests with claims for damages must not be successful! Let’s show Tönnies that he has made a proper settlement with his claim… The trial will certainly be a good opportunity to bring all the “mess” of the Tönnies company into the public eye.

Donation account

Recipient: VusEumUmseP e.V.

IBAN: DE30 8306 5408 0004 0613 81

BIC: GENODEF1SLR Subject: TDT2110 [IMPORTANT!]

Bitcoin address: 1HRszUVJGwzuC5oGhaCQutF9Fk1548e7iX

Contact

teardowntoennies@riseup.net

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tdt_2110

The labour law initiative aktion ./. arbeitsunrecht has published a press release on working conditions in the meat industry:

Suspicion of sham work contracts + exorbitant rents: What are prosecution, main customs office and labour ministries doing?

[…] In the course of the corona crisis, the media are once again reporting increasingly unpleasant facts. The legal core of the exploitation business are the so-called work contracts between slaughterhouse operators and so-called work contractors, who in turn contract the workers, most of whom come from Romania and Bulgaria.

The exploitation via work contracts is regularly criticised – but not sufficiently questioned. The legal basis of the regulations governing contracts for work is more than shaky.

Sham contracts: Organized deception of the authorities through illegal temporary employment agency work?

According to our research, everything speaks for the fact that in reality these are not contracts for work at all, but in fact employee supply contracts (i.e. concealed temporary work or sham contracts for work). This would have far-reaching consequences, since to our knowledge none of the contractors has permission to supply temporary workers. We would therefore be dealing with a criminal system that harms both the workers and – by evading social security contributions and taxes – the community. […]

Source:

12.05.2020, Press release by aktion ./. arbeitsunrecht: Conditions in the meat industry: work contracts or illegal temporary employment agency work?

Further information:

aktion./.arbeitsunrecht is a trade-union labour law initiative which campaigns for employees in the retail trade, the food industry and many other sectors. It provides information about companies hostile to works councils, supports works councils and trade unionists and also called for a day of action against the meat company Tönnies in 2019. Further information is available at: www.aktion.arbeitsunrecht.de

The meat industry – a systemically important branch of the profession? Friedrich from our alliance spoke about the meat industry in Corona times with the Anarchist Radio from Dresden.

You can listen to and download the radio report under the following link:

https://www.freie-radios.net/mp3/20200507-anarchistisc-102215.mp3?dl=1

Here is the announcement:

It is clear that the animal industry is using the Corona crisis to strengthen its position of power by, for example, loosening or levering out so-called animal protection regulations and control rules for workers. The reason for this is their status as a systemically important branch of the profession. Prices have fallen massively in the entire production chain. In order to continue making profits, the state is now supposed to step in. President Trump orders further production by decree from 1950 (on the occasion of the Korean War) in order to be able to oblige industrial companies to manufacture certain products. And the managing director of Müller Fleisch considers it impossible that the record-breaking number of corona diseases among his employees is connected with his business model, i.e. the outsourcing of work to Eastern European cheap labour and their precarious accommodation. Isn’t it almost grotesque to support financially and thus existentially an industry that is significantly responsible for the development of zoonoses or pandemics in the form of intensive animal husbandry? An industry that has created a rationalised, perfidiously sophisticated system to efficiently exploit human and animal bodies every minute? An industry whose logic of exploitation and interest is solely focused on maximizing profit and maximum yield? In this context, what is hidden under a systemically relevant profession? In today’s interview we invited Friedrich, who has been involved in the animal industry for quite some time and can give us a more detailed insight.