• I strongly oppose the Government’s proposal to extend the use of farrowing crates.
• The Bill ignores the decisions made after the 2020 High Court ruling that found farrowing crates unlawful under the Animal Welfare Act.
• Instead of helping farmers transition to humane systems, the Government is trying to rewrite the law to make cruelty legal again.
• Extending the current use of farrowing crates for another decade – and then allowing “temporary crates” indefinitely – ignores science, public opinion, and international context.

• Farrowing crates are metal cages that confine mother pigs so they cannot turn around. They cannot walk, build a nest, or properly interact with their piglets.
• This causes physical suffering (pressure sores, injuries, lameness) and psychological distress.
• Piglets suffer too — they miss out on normal maternal care and have higher stillbirth rates.
• The proposal to reduce length of time in the crate without increasing pen size is misleading and obscures the real welfare problem.
• Temporary crates are still harmful because they still prevent nest-building and stop the mother pig being able to mother her piglets just after birth.
• In addition, without increasing the pen size, when the temporary crate is opened up a lot more piglets will die. The solution is to move to larger free-farrowing pens which have been shown to protect both sows and piglets - not small temporary crates.

• In 2020, the High Court confirmed that standards allowing farrowing crates breached the Animal Welfare Act. The ruling stated that Parliament’s intent in 2015 was for farrowing crates to be phased out, not made permanent.
• Using primary legislation to override that High Court ruling and block independent expert advice from the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee is undemocratic and wrong in principle.
• The two-week consultation window is unreasonably short and appears designed to suppress public input.
• Anyone concerned about honest, transparent, and evidence-based lawmaking should be alarmed by this process.
• The Bill appears designed to avoid judicial review and limit independent advice from animal welfare experts such as the Minister’s independent advisors, the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee.

• Other countries have already banned farrowing crates, including Sweden, Switzerland, and Norway.
• The UK and EU are now making moves to phase them out based on public concern.
• The British Veterinary Association, the Pig Veterinary Society, and other professional bodies agree that farrowing crates are incompatible with animal welfare.
• Research shows that well-designed free-farrowing pens can achieve equal or better piglet survival while improving animal welfare.
• New Zealand risks falling behind our trading partners and damaging our global reputation as a humane, science-based country, conflicting with our claims that we are a ‘world leader’ in animal welfare.

• Free-farrowing pens are a proven, humane alternative that allow mother sows to move freely while keeping piglets safe.
• Around 45% of New Zealand pig farms already farrow without crates: change is possible.
• Farmers need certainty and fair support to transition, not another decade of delay and then ongoing public scrutiny of outdated practices.
• If farmers are going to invest in new sheds or equipment anyway, it makes sense to move directly to systems that meet the law and public expectations, such as free-farrowing pens out outdoor farrowing.
• The Government should offer grants, technical support, and clear pathways to help farmers build higher-welfare systems.

• New Zealanders care deeply about the welfare of animals and expect strong, science-based protections.
• A 2025 SPCA survey found that 90% of New Zealanders think protecting farmed animal welfare is important, and 85% believe the Government must ensure high standards.
• This Bill in its current form would betray public trust those values. Decisions about animal welfare should reflect public values of compassion, integrity, and fairness.

• Reject the Bill in its current form.
• Amend the ten-year transition so that it is:
• Towards free-farrowing systems that comply with the Animal Welfare Act 1999, and
• Implemented as soon as possible.
• Remove any clauses that limit the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee’s (NAWAC) independence or restrict future advice.
• Conduct or support a Parliamentary Inquiry into how animal welfare regulations are developed to prevent a situation like this ever occurring again.
• Provide transition assistance for farmers moving to crate-free systems like outdoor farrowing or larger free-farrowing pens.
• Restrict the import of low-welfare pork so our farmers are not undercut for doing the right thing.

Click through to the submission’s webpage, and click I am ready to make my submission. The Parliament website will talk you through the next steps. You can also watch a Quick Guide here.

The first page will ask whether you are submitting on behalf of yourself as an individual, or on behalf of an organisation. You can also choose whether you would like to present your submission to the committee by making an ‘oral submission’ (you don’t have to!)
The next page will ask for your contact details. You only need to include them here, and not in the main part of your submission.
Finally, you can either copy and paste your submission into a text box, or attach a document.

It only takes a few minutes, and we’re hoping to see as many submissions as possible!

We’ve provided some suggested text above, but we encourage you to make your submission your own – this will ensure your submission has more impact.

A good submission includes your general position (whether you support or oppose farrowing crates and the Bill) and your recommendations (e.g. to protect animal welfare, listen to the public, or phase out farrowing crates).

If you have relevant expertise (e.g. veterinary or farming professional, or you’ve done the reading) then that’s great to include, but you can also simply state that you feel strongly about this issue. Parliament’s job is to listen to what people have to say, whoever they are – so go ahead and say it!

Do keep it polite though – submissions which are irrelevant, offensive or potentially defamatory may not be accepted. Submissions are part of Parliament’s official record, and all submissions are publicly available and published online.

It’s good to be clear and concise with your submission – you don’t need to include a lot of information or spend lots of time looking for evidence.

If you have time to do so, that’s great – but just a few lines will do too.

It’s completely up to you. If you feel strongly on this issue and wish to be given a speaking slot for an oral submission, we encourage you to have your say! You can speak to the committee by video call or in-person.

But if you’d prefer to just submit text, that’s totally fine. SPCA and other organisations will be seeking to submit in person to the Committee, and we’ll highlight how many of you feel strongly about this issue.

Once you’ve made your submission, a team of advisers will read and analyse the submissions and present the results to the committee in a report. Those who have requested to speak to their submission may be contacted and given a time and date to do so.

Your submission will be published on the Parliament website (without your contact details visible), but note that it can take a few months for submissions to be made available online.

Once the committee has finished considering the legislation, it will suggest changes in a report to the House, which will be published on the Parliament’s website, and the legislation will move onto its second reading.