Opponents of a rabbit farm planned for near Amersham got some high profile backing when comedy star Ricky Gervais signed a petition against the proposal.
Local anger against quickly grew after the application for Magpie Lane, Coleshill was submitted with more than 33,000 people signing a petition urging Buckinghamshire Council to throw out the scheme.
Speaking to The Mirror, Gervais said he was appalled by the plans.
He commented: “Britain doesn’t need rabbit meat and fur farms, we don’t need to find new ways to exploit animals for our stomachs or our wardrobes. If these plans go ahead it will mean thousands of baby rabbits bred and taken from hundreds of mother rabbits who are treated like breeding machines.”
The scheme has been put forward by rabbit meat wholesale company, T&S Nurseries. If planning permission is granted, a 250-doe free range rabbit production unit, which would produce 10,000 packs of meat per year for the next three years, would be built.
Last month Phil Kerry, owner of T&S Nurseries, told AmershamNews: “Tonnes of rabbit meat comes from all over Europe every year – there is a massive commodity for rabbit. People are used to seeing rabbit as a pet. It’s a livestock.
“We treat them well. They run around freely, chase each other and have fun. We go the extra mile for the welfare of the rabbits by giving them the space and free range.”
Picture credit S_Bukley/Shutterstock
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