HAVE our food producers learned nothing? After bringing us animal cannibalism, BSE, salmonella, etc., they've done it again - they are promoting duck as the new health Christmas meat and supermarkets are going along with it.

In fact, it's almost all factory-farmed and unbelievably cruel.

Up to 10,000 birds are crammed into one shed on these stinking factory farms. They don't get to swim, dive or play in water as they are meant to - the only water they see is in their drinkers.

They would love to fly, mate and live up to 15 years, but some can hardly walk because of leg deformities.

There's no mating and life ends brutally after seven weeks. Many will be fully conscious when their throats are cut.

How long can we continue to allow animals to be treated as through they were nothing more than pieces of machinery and allow the Government to defend it?

Happily, you can help restore freedom to these wonderful birds by refusing to buy the meat, complaining to any store that sells it and supporting Viva's 'Ducks Out of Water' campaign. They can be contacted at 12 Queen Square, Brighton, BN1 3FD. Tel 01273 777688.

ROY ASHCROFT, Brownlow Street, Blackburn.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.