Dear Transition Sheffield,
I am writing to you as an environmental campaigner for the past twenty years and a volunteer, fundraiser and networker for the ecological movement, including Friends of the Earth, the Gaia Foundation and the Soil Association.
Four years ago I set out to discover who was paying the true price for the 'cheap' imported pork for sale in Britain’s supermarkets. I have produced a film called ‘Pig Business’ which documents the damaging impact factory farming is having on the quality of our food, the environment and the health and welfare of agricultural communities. We need your help to ensure the film results in less but better pig meat being the norm.
After watching the film, many environmentalists told me that they had no idea of the extent of harm that factory farming causes. Of particular interest to Transition Towns is the film's focus on local and organic farming as the solution to the increasing large scale pig farming abroad and the threat to many small scale UK farmers.
The link between meat consumption and climate change was highlighted by Lord Stern while the recent FoE report ‘Eating the planet’ showed that the world's increasing population can still be fed without intensive livestock production. We need to change the sick system now.
Films have proved to be hugely successful in focusing attention on massive injustices and forcing decision makers to change the law and businesses to improve their practices. We want to harness the existing momentum to achieve real legislative changes and increase the awareness of the average consumer. This is why we are asking you to get involved.
OUR CAMPAIGNWe are organising an event at the House of Commons to lobby MPs. It will be a chance for MPs to hear what experts are saying and commit to the legislative changes on labeling, on procurement of sustainable welfare friendly meat in schools and hospitals, and on banning imports of pig meat that are of a lower standard that UK laws allow..
Zac Goldsmith, Peter Ainsworth MP (Con), Alan Simpson MP (Lab), and Tim Farron MP (Lib) will host the event and many NGOs, including FoE will speak to the assembled MPs and journalists.
WHAT YOU CAN DOWe hope to galvanize enough popular support for MPs to really feel the pressure, by getting as many people as possible writing letters. This is the perfect time, pre- election, for MPs to show that they respond to the concerns of their constituents. Can your Transition Towns group and/or members do the two following things?:
1. Screen the film to raise awareness in the local community (we can send you a copy).
2. Write a short letter to tell your MP how you feel about the film , why it shocks you., and ask your MP for three key things:
to watch the dvd of Pig Business that we will send them – and invite them to your screening if you can hold one.
Ask your MP to attend the Pig Business event at the House of Commons on the 27th of January 2010 at 6-8pm.
To contact your MP, please click on this link:
http://www.pigbusiness.co.uk/email-mp.phpPlease contact us on
info@pigbusiness.co.uk, or by phone 0207 584 6592 where a member of the team will be happy to answer any questions and if you are to host a screening, send you a DVD free of charge. There are three versions of the DVD, a version which was edited for fear of legal repercussions, and which appeared on More 4, and comes in a short or a long version (57 or 73 mins) or a stronger director’s cut (75 mins). Please state in your reply which version you would like to recieve and whether your screening will require a higher-resolution DVD, for larger screens.
Alternatively, to find out more about the film please visit our website:
http://www.pigbusiness.co.uk. To watch the film for free on You Tube, please click here:
http://bit.ly/2SNoTZThank you for your help,
Kind Regards,
Tracy Worcester