Vegans hold wake for turkeys slaughtered for Xmas

A GROUP of vegan activists have held a wake to mourn nine turkeys killed for Christmas.

The tearful group hugged and stood in silence by the gate of a farm next to a sign which said ‘They wanted to live’.

The birds were scheduled to be auctioned off by St Werburgh’s City Farm charity, in Bristol, to raise funds.

But the farm, which aims to educate the public about animal welfare and how food gets from field to plate, cancelled the sale following protests from vegans.

Instead, the nine turkeys were sent to an abattoir last Friday, ready to become festive lunches. Activists held a vigil for the birds – dubbed ‘the St Werburgh’s Nine’ – outside the farm, with Sarah Nicol, the organiser, saying: ‘There’s a lot of anger the turkeys are dead. We just want people to have a peaceful outlet for their grief.’

She said the protesters aimed to stop animals being slaughtered at any of Bristol’s city farms. ‘We’re hopeful that the farms can move towards being sanctuaries.

‘Their goals aren’t based in slaughtering their animals, they’re based in helping and educating the public. So it’s a logical step to move towards becoming a sanctuary.’

St Werburgh’s City Farm, which attracts 60,000 visitors and works with 3, 00 disadvantaged people a year, said it would not be changing to become a sanctuary.

In a statement the farm said: ‘Having listened to the views of a small section of our community, we decided not to hold our annual public turkey auction.

‘However, the aims and objectives of the farm remain unchanged and our turkeys have been sold for Christmas.’

Campaigner Laurie Lou, who attended the vigil, said: ‘We will be remembering the turkeys with love and sadness, but not with anger.

‘They were a symbol for us that everyone deserves to live happy, safe and free.’

‘Remember with love and sadness’