The NVWA (Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority) and the police have intervened at a number of illegal slaughterhouses in recent days. Carcasses of sheep were found, as well as living animals. Friday marked the start of Eid al-Adha, an Islamic festival for which many sheep are slaughtered.
The surviving sheep have been handed over to the Comité Dierennoodhulp (Animal Emergency Aid Committee). The animal welfare organization speaks of “heartbreaking” scenes with sheep waiting to be slaughtered. NVWA and police are extra alert for illegal slaughter during this period.
On Friday, the NVWA and police intervened at an illegal slaughterhouse on a farm in North Limburg. There, employees found four sheep carcasses and a lot of slaughter waste, reports the NVWA. Eight surviving sheep have been handed over to the animal welfare organization, which is looking for shelter for them. The committee has agreements with the NVWA about this.
The Comité Dierennoodhulp reported on Saturday, the second day of Eid al-Adha, that they had rescued thirteen sheep from illegal slaughter in recent days. On Thursday, a report came in of two sheep in the garden behind a shawarma shop in Veldhoven, Brabant.
A day earlier, tied-up sheep were found in the trunks of cars in Edam and Katwoude. The NVWA confirms the incidents, but never mentions place names. On Thursday, the supervisor reported discovering an illegal slaughterhouse on a farm in Gelderland. The NVWA does not report whether the illegal slaughterhouses slaughtered the animals because of Eid al-Adha.
During Eid al-Adha, NVWA veterinarians in slaughterhouses closely monitor whether the slaughter is carried out according to the rules. Outside the slaughterhouses there are extra checks and the service takes action after reports. The fine for illegal unstunned slaughter can be up to 103,000 euros. Offenders also risk a prison sentence of up to six years, warns the NVWA. Eid al-Adha lasts until Sunday.