Anoxia refers to an environment that has a total lack of oxygen. Animals exposed to this environment will immediately lose consciousness without any additional stress or pain. This is why it’s the preferred method for stunning animals.
Anoxia is not to be confused with hypoxia which refers to a partial lack of oxygen. When an animal is exposed to a hypoxic environment for stunning, it will notice a lack of oxygen and panic due to difficulties breathing. An example of a method that is based on hypoxia is carbon dioxide gassing, which is known for causing stress and pain to the animal.
Using our high expansion foam the foam has minimal impact on the animals due to its nature. The difference between high expansion foam and other foams is that the bubbles in the foam are larger and also contain less water, meaning that there’s no risk of airway occlusions.
You can read about our research regarding foam here
The reasons are many, but to highlight the matter of the heart for HEFT it is the improved welfare perspective for both animals and operators. The non-aversive approach combined with the semi-automatic system for operators takes their relief of them. The method also comes with reduced gas consumption compared to other gas methods, and the semi-automatic process ensures a qualitative and consistent outcome.
You can read more about our methods here
Yes, our systems have a built-in window for observation of the animals during the process. There is also an outlet for an oxygen sensor to monitor the oxygen levels in the system.
On-farm solutions are developed for non-viable, sick, or injured pigs and poultry. The technology can be used to process both single animals and groups of animals. Emergency Response solutions are meant to be used in case of a disease outbreak, closed borders, or disaster control.
HEFTs recommendation of the max number of animals is based on the 1/2005 EU regulation. The European Union’s legislation Council Regulation no 1/2005 states the transportation rules for every species per m2, with animal welfare in mind we use the same standards plus a 50% increased area.
You can find this specified in the user manuals for each product.
Each system will use a different amount of gas depending on the volume of the container.
For example, the H1 can be operated 20 times using a 300bar 20litre nitrogen bottle.
You can find the nitrogen consumption for each system on the product sheets.
The same system can be used for pigs and poultry
Our products are developed and categorized based on the size of the animals, see our products or contact us for more information
