PETA’s ‘Hell on wheels’ van turns up at Welsh locations

Stephen Price

A ‘hyper-realistic’ ‘Hell on Wheels’ truck from animal-rights charity PETA has visited two Welsh cities with the aim of giving locals an up-close look at ‘the suffering behind every bacon sandwich and pork sausage’.

PETA’s ‘Hell on Wheels’ pig transport truck, covered with images of real pigs on their way to slaughter truck rolled into Cardiff and Swansea, bringing diners heading into Hickory’s Smokehouse and other Cardiff eateries face to face behind the hidden stories behind their meals.

PETA share: “The drive-by campaign is confronting passersby with images of pigs bound for slaughter and the sound of their terrified, panicked screams at a slaughterhouse.

It’s a harrowing reminder that these sensitive individuals suffer horrifically when the meat industry raises and kills them for their flesh.”

“Hell on Wheels will be making pitstops near restaurants, theme parks, and city centres in England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland.

The truck is packed with free leaflets that highlight interesting facts about pigs and how you can help them. We’re inviting everyone to rethink their diet, so they no longer contribute to the nightmarish journeys to death endured by millions of sentient beings.

PETA Vice President of Programmes Elisa Allen shared: “Every bacon sandwich, sausage roll, and pulled pork burger came from a once-living, sensitive individual who was crammed onto a truck for a terrifying journey to their death.”

“PETA’s ‘Hell on Wheels’ truck is an appeal to anyone who eats animals to remember that the meat industry is cruel to them and that the only kind meal is a vegan one.”

PETA notes that pigs are soothed by music, love playing ball, sleep in “pig piles,” and female pigs are naturally doting mothers.

The charity shares: “In the meat industry, mother pigs are confined to farrowing crates so small that they can’t even turn around, let alone fulfil their strong urge to build a nest as they would naturally do.

“They’re forcibly impregnated over and over again, and each litter of piglets is taken away from them after only a few weeks.

“Workers chop off piglets’ tails and clip their teeth with pliers – and the animals endure intense confinement before their throats are slashed in abattoirs.”

‘Gas chambers’

In the UK, pigs are transported to slaughterhouses, where most are lowered into chambers filled with high‑concentration carbon dioxide gas, while others are electrically stunned before their throats are cut. Their bodies are then submerged in scalding‑hot water to remove their hair. When stunning fails, some pigs can be scalded while still conscious and able to feel pain.

PETA isn’t alone in its concerns for pig welfare and the unnecessary cruelty inflicted on an animal that is more intelligent than our four-legged canine friends.

In 2025, the RSPCA called on the Welsh public to sign an open letter to demand an end to the use of carbon dioxide as a slaughter method for pigs, which is used to kill 90% of pigs in the UK

The most common slaughter/killing method used for pigs is carried out using carbon dioxide gas. During this process, pigs are exposed to and inhale high concentrations of CO2, eventually killing them.

THE RSPCA, Slingshot and others maintain that there are significant animal welfare concerns associated with the use of CO2, and pigs can experience significant distress before becoming unconscious.

The RSPCA shared at the time: “This practice, used to stun/kill approximately 90% of UK pigs, is widely recognised as causing pain and distress before the animals lose consciousness. It is unacceptable that millions of pigs continue to suffer every year ”

There are currently no other humane alternatives that are both legal and commercially viable for the industry.

PETA’s ‘Hell on Wheels’ truck is touring the UK and Ireland throughout October.

PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat” – points out that “when it comes to the ability to feel pain, hunger, and thirst, a pig is a dog is a boy”.

For more information, visit PETA.org.uk or follow PETA on Facebook, X, TikTok, or Instagram.  

---

Get more trusted Welsh news

Choose Nation.Cymru as a preferred source in Google News to see more of our journalism.