Countryfile presenter Tom Heap says children should take a slight deviation on their school trips to the farm – to a slaughterhouse tour.

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“I honestly believe that slaughterhouses, intensive chicken barns or crowded pig pens should be open to the public eye. Schools should be encouraged to visit as part of the curriculum,” writes Heap in the latest issue of Radio Times (out Tuesday).

“There could be see-through tunnels, as in an aquarium, through the farm and across the meat-processing floor, for a nice family day out before having a pork pie or some chicken nuggets at the café. Or a salad.”

He adds: “This may sound absurd, but at least install a webcam at every stage of production, put a hyperlink on the final package and brand it ‘The Visible Pig’ or ‘Candid Cockerel’.”

Also the rural affairs correspondent for BBC News, Heap has tackled controversial issues in the past on Countryfile – particularly on the topic of hunting. He previously interviewed Princess Anne on the debate surrounding badger culling, where the royal claimed gassing the animals was humane – “you go to sleep, basically."

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Read Heap’s full interview in the latest issue of Radio Times

Authors

Thomas LingDigital editor, BBC Science Focus

Thomas is Digital editor at BBC Science Focus. Writing about everything from cosmology to anthropology, he specialises in the latest psychology, health and neuroscience discoveries. Thomas has a Masters degree (distinction) in Magazine Journalism from the University of Sheffield and has written for Men’s Health, Vice and Radio Times. He has been shortlisted as the New Digital Talent of the Year at the national magazine Professional Publishers Association (PPA) awards. Also working in academia, Thomas has lectured on the topic of journalism to undergraduate and postgraduate students at The University of Sheffield.

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