The Farmer Labelled as a Psychopath by Vegan Activists | This Morning

it's the traditional Christmas dinner but have you ever given much thought to where your turkey comes from a farmer Matt Carter is giving his customers a very clear insight offering them the chance to not only handpick but feed look after and name their turkey all before it slaughter for Christmas as you can imagine this initiative hasn't gone down well with vegans who have accused him of being a murderer and a psychopath but this is is this just another example of militant vegans going too far or might they have a point we're joined by Matt now from his farm in Exeter alongside vegan and Made in Chelsea star Lucy was and so welcome to both of you Matt we'll start with that you all started with a post on Facebook yeah I was out feeding the turkeys one day and I just thought it would be a nice idea if I um allow people to come and see them and meet the turkey and then possibly name it and so I put their post on Facebook and I've got the post here it says come and pick your own Christmas turkey at the farm shop we'll put a name tag on it you come and feed it help look after it for the next two months you won't need to get involved in any of the difficult bits at the end and we're leaving bone and stuff it for you when you come and pick it up in time for Christmas and so what sort of reaction did you get a lot of people take us up on the offer and then we also had a lot of people who were violently against against us and they didn't want us to do it they want us to take the post down how did they show long it was seen by half a million people I started on just keyboard warriors from behind their keyboard typing messages and then we started getting a few phone calls and then we had a graffiti across the front of the doors of the farm shop and then a few of my members of staff start to get targeted by their own social media so they obviously looked them up and then targeted them yes you've said that perhaps what they don't realize is that they've done you massive effects favor your sales have gone through the roof for the last copiers you've sold 1,000 turkeys but this year you're you'll double that at 2,000 yeah yeah so I mean yeah for us it's pin it's been they've done us a big favor I mean the fact that I'm on TV talking you today and showing you Turkey's is it's good really so just from your point of view why do you think it's a good idea to name your turkey and get involved in the final couple of months of its life well I'm a father and my my children I want them to know where their meat comes from I want I want them to understand what what it's about being a farmer and also not just thinking that the food comes out of a packet in a supermarket I want them to understand and if they then make an informed choice which Lucy's obviously done to become a vegan then then they've made it on an informed decision but I don't think they should be making that decision blind and not knowing that their meat comes from animals and and how are your children with that because I'm not a vegan but to sort of strike a bond with it with an animal and name it I can't imagine doing that with my daughter and sort of almost acting like it's some pet or you know something that you're fond of and then the realization of what actually happens to that animal how are children with that yeah the whole naming thing was slightly taken out of context the naming the naming thing was written and when I was out in the middle of the field feeding them and I meant will have to name the turkey so you'll know that Turkey belongs to mr. and mrs. Smith that turkey belongs to mr. and mrs. stone so it's not it wasn't although some people have named them and come up with names for them that but but the fact still remains the same that people should know where their meat comes from and if you're gonna buy meat then they're not why not why not know that it's come from an ethical farm that's well looked after and the turkeys have been free-range and had a good life yeah I'm what what do you mean by ethical exactly well been well looked after we they're free-range theirs they're slaughtered humanely in well and and the best way is a humane slaughter exactly huh well the in the most stress-free possible what does that entail well it entails killing the turkey but you does know as a way of having your Christmas dinner without killing the turkey does that Avengers how do you kill the turkey just okay Lucy you worm obviously you know we would get see the point you're that you're making there and is there any area here that you agree with Matt that it's quite important it's it's very European the French very good at this and there you know you have a relationship with your feud you know where it comes from you can make an informed choice you don't walk into a supermarket it's packaged up lots of children when they buy their lamb chops have no clue well actually exactly so is there any point that you agree with here at first obviously I was a bit like this is kind of psychotic because you know this is the kind of way that you would treat a pass well you did actually say anyone who hangs there took anyone who goes on to that farm and does that is psychotic yeah but obviously I disagree with the killing of animals full stop but at the same time I've thought about it and I think actually in a way it's good because I want people to be able to make a connection with these animals and realize that they actually you know have souls and that they feel pain and that they're gentle creatures that mean no harm to us and that maybe if people do make the connection maybe they wouldn't want to have these animals killed on their behalf so that they can eat them for Christmas or what a minute why are you calling for everyone to be vegans and not vegetarians it doesn't seem to be any sort of middle ground here yeah definitely I mean I used to be vegetarian for a long time most of my life I grew up in a working farm which a lot of people don't know and I used to vegetarian I became vegan just through education and I found out that the dairy industry and the egg industries are really cruel I didn't realize that and you know in order to have milk you have to have a baby cow and then in order to take the cow from them from the milk from the cow you have to take away the baby so I found out that actually the dairy industry is extremely cruel and it kills millions of cars every year in in 2016 one percent of the British population was vegan and and now in April I think it was 3.5 million seven percent so obviously you know people are drift away away from me through vegetarianism into veganism so it's definitely happening but the where people have a real dislike of the way it's being done is when you have a die like like that who who's you know got his business up and running yeah he's doing it his ethically as is possible I know you don't accept I don't the same at at the same time you've got people spray painting the front of your shop and also calling him a murderer and he's had death threats do you agree with that I don't agree with violence in any form really this is kind of why I'm vegan I mean I'm sure some people get a bit carried away with their passion and emotion whatever don't agree with it but then at the same time like as a vegan I get met with abuse from meat-eaters all the time like if I talk about veganism or whatever on social channels I always get people sending me kind of abusive messages so it goes both ways you're getting the same respect because you are a big a huge controversial topic at the moment and it is relevant as you say a lot of people are making the change to be more compassionate so I think that it does go both ways and it's a shame that that's happening but I don't think it takes away from the fact that by being vegan you are making a more compassionate choice find a word to you mat anything you'd like to add no I think I think there's if a vegans going to target if it vegans going to make a campaign and target anybody I don't think a small farm shop in Devon that's trying to be inclusive to everybody and look after their animals in the best way is that is the right place to start and if Lucy Lucy's going to make a decision she wants to make it informed and educated and then and then start in the right places and criticising a farm shop in Devon is not the right place at all all right we're going to leave it there thank you both thank you Matt thank you very much thank you very much indeed you

Channel: This Morning

Views: 1,133,242

Keywords: this morning, interview, holly willoughby, phillip schofield, ruth langsford, eamonn holmes, chat shows - topic, chat show - topic, talk shows - topic, rochelle humes, Vegan, vegan activist, vegan activism, farmer death threat, lucy watson made in chelsea, lucy watson vegan, lucy watson feed me vegan, lucy watson 2018, Mat carter, name your turkey, farmer vs vegan, vegan debates meat eater, vegan debate on tv

Id: znMjC6E7oHA

Length: 8min 45sec (525 seconds)

Published: Tue Nov 27 2018