Veggie Nuggets

Court overturns decision

March. A Belgian court decided to overturn an earlier decision in the case against 7 cattle farmers for cruelty to animals. The case was brought to light after the animal rights organisation Gaia/Animaux en Péril secretly shot a video at the cattle market in Ciney, showing shocking footage of the horrendous treatment of cows. The images caused a public outcry in Belgium and the farmers were found guilty. The case has now been overturned on a technicality, as it was not stated that the verdict was unanimous. Gaia president Michel Vandenbosch was appalled by the decision.

Jenny from the Block

Animal rights activists protested outside a cinema during the premiere of Jennifer Lopez’ new film “Monster in Law”. Lopez refuses to ban the use of fur from her personal clothes label “Sweetface”. The singer attended the premiere together with her husband Marc Anthony. It is J Lo’s first production since “Gigli” and “Jersey Girl”, both of which were complete flops. The protesters claim that she should be making a positive contribution to animal rights, rather than being indirectly responsible for the death of hundreds of animals. Jennifer Lopez refused to comment.

Exploding toads

Toads in an area of northern Germany are being killed off by a mysterious disease – they are exploding. The toads expand to three and a half times their normal size before bursting. The reason for this is unclear. Possible explanations could be an unknown virus or a fungus in the pond. The area in Hamburg’s Altona district has been closed to the public.

Bullfights

Polls conducted in the last few decades in Spain show a steady decline in the interest for bullfighting. Figures show that only 30 % of Spaniards are interested in the bloody spectacle while 70 % show no interest at all. The percentage of people opposing bullfighting is highest in the younger age groups.

Revenge of the Sausage

A motorist’s nose was broken after a frozen sausage was thrown through the open window of his moving car. The man was driving near his home in Essex when the bizarre incident happened. The 46-year old driver managed to stop safely before passers-by came to his aid. He said he saw a car coming the other way and suddenly felt a searing pain in his nose, which was undoubtedly broken. Police said they were investigating.

Canteen of Death

April. 31 people were taken to hospital in a severe case of food poisoning in Frankfurt am Main. Customers having lunch in the canteen at one of the biggest banks complained of increased heart beat and red skin. The street was immediately cordoned off for both cars and pedestrians and a field hospital was set up. A total of 66 people were medically treated at the scene. Doctors came to the conclusion that the food poisoning was the result of an allergic reaction to a high level of histamine that was found in the fish dish.

Bob Hunter R.I.P.

May. In Toronto, Greenpeace co-founder Bob Hunter passed away. Hunter was 63 and died of prostate cancer. His main focus was the fight against nuclear testing and pollution of the oceans. He was also strongly opposed to whale and seal hunting. Greenpeace has around 2.5 million members in 40 countries.

Tsunami devastates turtle conservation

The killer waves that battered the Indian shore line last year December destroyed marine research stations, with scores of field staff killed or missing. Nesting grounds were also affected due to erosion of sandy beaches. Several privately owned turtle hatcheries lost eggs and hatchlings as holding tanks were shattered by the waves. Biologists say that the tsunami may push the dwindling turtle population even closer to extinction. The Indian Ocean countries are now starting a special conservation plan to save turtles, including a scheme to protect their nesting and feeding grounds.

Killing Fields

Early April and the ice floes of Canada’s northwest coast have once again been turned into killing fields. By mid May, about 300,000 baby seals will have been slaughtered for their valuable pelts. A few years ago, the seal hunting industry faced bankruptcy due to lack of demand. Now however, with fur back in fashion, the hunt is profitable again, thus bringing millions of dollars to the poor communities in the area, according to the Canadian government.
This years’ hunt is the biggest since the 1970’s. The seals killed are all between three to seven weeks old.

EVU Youth Section

Calling all vegetarian children in Europe! If you are a vegetarian and you want to tell us your story, write to us. If you have a vegetarian friend, tell us about your friendship. If you want to share your thoughts on animals, share them with us. If you have rescued an animal, we want to congratulate you and we want to know what happened. If you can draw, send us a picture for our gallery. If you can cook, tell us what you really like to make and how we can try it too. If you have more ideas on how to make this site YOURS, we REALLY want to hear from you.

More information about the EVU Youth Section, including contact details, is available on the EVU website at: www.europeanvegetarian.org/youth/