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SAFE words Last week I watched current affairs programme 60 Minutes with dismay. It was disappointing journalism. It was a weak,passive and largely unbalanced look at animal research in New Zealand. Its focus was a Canadian veterinarian and researcher who is setting up Australasia's largest companion animal breeding and research facility. The facility wasn't identified on the programme but SAFE began its investigation on Valley Animal Research Centre (VARC) four months ago and launched the campaign to coincide with the 60 Minutes programme. SAFE obtained undercover footage taken inside one of the facilities that revealed first hand the appalling conditions in which the animals were being housed. SAFE contacted 60 Minutes who agreed to expose the story, however it wasn't the exposé we had counted on. From SAFE's perspective it failed on many counts but mainly through shoddy journalism. The reporter made factually incorrect statements and let the researcher go unchallenged.
VARC is the first of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere to use beagles for research. Aside from beagles SAFE understands VARC plans to breed cats, horses and rabbits, also for research. While it appears no terminal experiments are taking place right now, the facility is still new. It is likely animals will eventually undergo invasive experiments and be killed. The head of VARC says his animals are necessary research tools in the quest to save human life. The "higher goal" as he describes it. The professional motivational speaker clearly has the gift-of-the-gab and beautifully justified the value of his brutal business. He was fairly convincing but then again, he went unchallenged. He referred to the animals that paid with their lives as the "real heros of the story" behind the science. Last time I checked mate, heros are typically rewarded with praise and admiration, not kept in grotty cages, forced to take drugs and finally executed. Sign the petition. Forward it to your friends. Please do it today. Anthony Terry
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SAFE was disappointed with the 60 Minutes programme due to its somewhat one-sided perspective. This view is shared by many who watched the programme and who have commented on the 
SAFE has lodged a submission against a proposal to build New Zealand's largest piggery in the Waikato area, southeast of Morrinsville. Kereone's McIntyre Piggery has applied to Environment Waikato and the Matamata-Piako District Council for resource consent to increase the size of the piggery by almost 50 times, from 1100 to 50,000 pigs. Currently New Zealand's largest piggery has 35,000 pigs. 
