This is Pignorant - A documentary film by Joey Carbstrong that seeks to expose the cruelty and abuse in the UK pig farming industry. Joey's message is powerful, as he takes significant risks in order to comment on one of the most pressing civil rights issues of our time.
In the documentary, Joey works with undercover activists, ex-slaughterhouse-workers, animal welfare advocates, a pig veterinarian, animal researchers, and academics to demonstrate different perspectives surrounding the pig farming industry. Experienced vegans and animal activists will be familiar with much of the information discussed, as well as the abuse revealed within the pig industry, while others who are unfamiliar stand to learn a significant amount from the documentary.
Joey Carbstrong does not hold back in showcasing forms of abuse within the pig industry supply chain. The film educates viewers on the contradictory messaging behind RSPCA certifications and Red Tractor labels in the UK, revealing them to be a form of animal industry propaganda. The film team expose animal abuse at free-range pig farms, factory farms, and of course the slaughterhouses themselves. This film pulls back the curtain to reveal the lie of the food labels we've been taught to trust, in the face of the reality of slaughtering animals. The message is simple and compelling - humane slaughter is a contradiction, and animals deserve justice.
My only criticism of the film is the emphasis on the "making of" footage, as Joey dedicates significant runtime to showing his infiltration of the local slaughterhouse to plant (and later retrieve) hidden cameras. In these moments, I feel the film loses its vision and focuses too much on Joey. It doesn't matter to the film's final message just how difficult it was for Joey to plant a camera inside the slaughterhouse gas chamber - What matters to the final message is the camera footage itself, and what implications it has for the consumer of pig/pork products.
This is not always an easy film to watch - some of the footage is grueling and violent. But this is what makes it so important to watch anyway. This film's release now and on a mainstream platform represents the persistence of the modern animal rights movement. Joey Carbstrong's Pignorant relays a pivotal message that deserves to be heard by all, and especially the people who continue to pay for animal abuse.
In the documentary, Joey works with undercover activists, ex-slaughterhouse-workers, animal welfare advocates, a pig veterinarian, animal researchers, and academics to demonstrate different perspectives surrounding the pig farming industry. Experienced vegans and animal activists will be familiar with much of the information discussed, as well as the abuse revealed within the pig industry, while others who are unfamiliar stand to learn a significant amount from the documentary.
Joey Carbstrong does not hold back in showcasing forms of abuse within the pig industry supply chain. The film educates viewers on the contradictory messaging behind RSPCA certifications and Red Tractor labels in the UK, revealing them to be a form of animal industry propaganda. The film team expose animal abuse at free-range pig farms, factory farms, and of course the slaughterhouses themselves. This film pulls back the curtain to reveal the lie of the food labels we've been taught to trust, in the face of the reality of slaughtering animals. The message is simple and compelling - humane slaughter is a contradiction, and animals deserve justice.
My only criticism of the film is the emphasis on the "making of" footage, as Joey dedicates significant runtime to showing his infiltration of the local slaughterhouse to plant (and later retrieve) hidden cameras. In these moments, I feel the film loses its vision and focuses too much on Joey. It doesn't matter to the film's final message just how difficult it was for Joey to plant a camera inside the slaughterhouse gas chamber - What matters to the final message is the camera footage itself, and what implications it has for the consumer of pig/pork products.
This is not always an easy film to watch - some of the footage is grueling and violent. But this is what makes it so important to watch anyway. This film's release now and on a mainstream platform represents the persistence of the modern animal rights movement. Joey Carbstrong's Pignorant relays a pivotal message that deserves to be heard by all, and especially the people who continue to pay for animal abuse.