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Chris Packham Joins Woman Living In Pig Crate During 21-Day Stand Against Factory Farming

Writer: Animal Rising Press
Animal Rising Press
1 day ago
4 min read

Wildlife presenter and former RSPCA president Chris Packham joined Michelle Farnham inside a pig farrowing crate outside the National Gallery today, where she has been living for over a week to highlight suffering on British factory farms.


  • Animal Rising campaign lead Michelle Farnham is living inside the crate 24 hours a day as part of a living art installation outside the National Gallery. She does not leave the crate at any point, day or night, from 1 to 22 September. [1]

  • Farrowing crates are still used in approximately 92% of indoor pig production systems, confining more than 200,000 mother pigs each year [2] - but Animal Rising says the crates are just one part of a much wider problem, and is calling on the Government to end factory farming by 2040. 

  • The action follows Animal Rising’s release of hidden-camera footage documenting the life of Luna, a mother pig kept in a farrowing crate on a Suffolk factory farm. Over 19,000 people have now signed a petition calling for her release to sanctuary. [3] [4]


Chris Packham joined Michelle in the crate today (09/09/26) on her ninth consecutive day living inside behind its bars in Trafalgar Square. 


Animal Rising is now calling on the government to commit to the end of factory farming by 2040, arguing the scale of suffering in intensive farming systems can no longer be ignored.


Visiting today, Chris Packham said:


“Any animal being subjected to this level of confinement is horrific. And we have to remember that farrowing crates are not some fringe practice – they are routinely used across the British pig industry. This crate shows us what happens when animals are reduced to units of production, rather than recognised as individuals with needs of their own. 
“The problems with factory farming extend far beyond what happens inside these crates. We’ve built a system that confines huge numbers of sentient animals in intensive conditions, while placing enormous pressures on our land, climate and wildlife. We need to look honestly at the true cost of farming in this way – both to animals and to the natural world.
“Factory farming has become deeply embedded in the way we produce food, causing immense suffering to the animals on these farms and taking a devastating toll on our environment. We urgently need to move away from these animal factories and towards a more sustainable future. We can’t keep accepting this as normal. It’s a broken system, and it needs to end.”

Packham stepped down as president of the RSPCA in December 2024 following Animal Rising investigations into RSPCA Assured farms and slaughterhouses, saying he had seen “no meaningful change” in response to the findings. [5] [6]


Why Michelle entered the crate


Michelle Farnham has spent years examining conditions inside British animal farms. She studied Animal Management for two years and has since reviewed hundreds of hours of undercover footage recorded inside UK pig farms, working alongside veterinary and animal welfare law experts to assess conditions, including during Animal Rising’s investigations into RSPCA Assured farms and slaughterhouses. 


Farrowing crates can confine mother pigs for four to five weeks at a time around giving birth and nursing their piglets, leaving them unable to turn around or take more than a step forward or back. Sows are put through this cycle repeatedly, returning to the crates with successive litters until they are eventually culled.


Michelle said:


“I entered this crate for Luna, a mother pig we met on a Suffolk factory farm. We documented her life in a crate just like this for a month. This is one of the hardest things I’ve ever put myself through, but when my time is up, I can walk away for good. Around 200,000 mother pigs go into farrowing crates in the UK every year, and they don’t have that choice.
“The response from the public has been overwhelmingly positive. So many people have stopped to talk, and they’re shocked when they realise that this is happening to pigs on British farms today. Seeing people engage with something that is normally hidden from view has made every day in here worthwhile.
“We need to bring what happens to farmed animals out into the open. This is about Luna, but it’s also about all the animals living inside factory farms whose lives we rarely see. We’re urging the Government to end factory farming, because no animal should be forced to live like this.”

Animal Rising released its investigation into Luna’s life last week, after documenting her for a month on a factory farm in Suffolk. Hidden-camera footage narrated by Michelle shows Luna giving birth and nursing her piglets while confined inside a farrowing crate, unable to turn around or freely interact with her piglets. Animal Rising is calling for Luna to be released to a sanctuary home that has been offered to her, alongside its wider call for the Government to commit to ending factory farming by 2040.


Over 19,000 people have signed the petition since Luna’s story was released.


Michelle and Animal Rising spokespeople are available for interviews and comment at the crate outside the National Gallery. Please email press@animalrising.org or call +44 1225 29 6691 to arrange. 


ENDS

Word count: 837


All images and videos in this file, on our social media, and website can be used with credit to Animal Rising under ‘fair use’ for the purposes of reporting.


Notes to editors

[6] Packham resigns from RSPCA position: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cyv381edvg9o



 
 
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