The Factory Farm Playset

More than 70% of farm animals in the world live in factory farms.

World Animal Protection hopes to change that with their Factory Farm Playset.

Unlike ordinary farm toys, the playset was designed to depict the unnatural living conditions imposed on cows, pigs and chickens in intensive farms. The packaging even features a warning label highlighting the methane and CO2 emissions from agriculture that contribute to climate change.

«Five- or six-year-olds may not yet have an understanding of politics, diplomacy and global issues, but they have a clear sense of right and wrong and of the need to change things«, says Lindsay Duncan, UK Campaigns Manager for Farming at World Animal Protection.

The charity hopes that the 1:32 scale model will allow children to «reimagine the traditional story of farms that we were taught in childhood«.

What is factory farming?

It is estimated that at least 50 billion animals are raised each year in factory farms, meaning they receive no natural light, no outdoor space and no sustainable feed.

With the goal of maximising production and minimising costs, agribusinesses keep animals such as cattle, poultry and fish in large production facilities at high stocking densities.

These cramped conditions lead to serious health problems for many animals.

Over 80% of pigs from factory farms in the USA have pneumonia at the time of slaughter, while battery-farmed chickens spend their entire lives in a cage smaller than an iPad.

Weight-gain drugs administered through feed cause chickens to reach their slaughter weight after just 35 days. Under natural conditions, this process would take more than 90 days.

What impact does intensive farming have on the environment?

The Factory Farm Playset not only highlights the ethical dilemmas of factory farming, but also its connection to climate change.

«Livestock farming is responsible for the equivalent of 7.1 gigatons of CO2 per year – that is 14.5 percent of greenhouse gas emissions», Duncan continued.

If agriculture remains unchecked, it is expected to cause 52% of global greenhouse gas emissions in the coming decades – 70% of that from meat and dairy products alone.

We need to reduce meat consumption and end factory farming to prevent further climate damage. If we eat less meat and grow plants for people instead of animals, we use significantly less land and resources, which drastically reduces emissions and eases the pressure on wildlife and their habitats.

Lindsay Duncan

The Factory Farm Playset is aimed at children, but World Animal Protection hopes that adults will also come to this conclusion.

«We can all learn something from it to protect the planet for future generations. We, the ‘adults’, need to change our behaviour – and quickly.«

The campaign «Say Yes to Less» by World Animal Protection encourages people in the United Kingdom to do their part in putting an end to factory farming by going meat-free for a day, a week, or an entire month.