The Mauléon-Licharre slaughterhouse (Pyrénées-Atlantiques) once again shaken by a crisis, in the midst of farmers’ demonstrations. The structure which hit the headlines in 2016 after the broadcast of shocking videos filmed by the L214 association and showing badly stunned animals before being slaughtered, bleeding sheep still conscious, is today facing a collective resignation of the six members of its board of directors, revealed France Blue Basque Country.
These resignations, presented on January 25, arise as part of a latent conflict with the Departmental Directorate for Population Protection (DDPP), which appears to have developed over time. It reached its climax on December 22, when the DDPP submitted to the prefect a proposal to decommission the Pays de Soule slaughterhouse.
“We very quickly noticed that the situation was complicated since the L214 affair”
For the board of directors, chaired by Jean-Michel Arrayet, also mayor of the small town of Ordiarp, it was the last straw. “Eight years later, we are still paying for this L214 video story” denounces, disillusioned, Jean-Michel Arrayet to 20 minutes. “When we arrived at the board of directors in 2020, we very quickly noted that the situation was complicated since the L214 affair, relations with the veterinary services were difficult, and this was further accentuated in 2023,” continues the chosen one. “We consider that the debt has been paid, that we must now turn the page, especially since we have done a lot to modernize the tool and adapt to what was asked of us. » This is how in 2023 “we have spent 250,000 euros just for compliance, it’s enormous. »
What exactly happened? An audit carried out within the slaughterhouse, at the request of the prefecture, concluded on December 10 with “congratulations from the authorities for the work undertaken in the establishment” assures Jean-Michel Arrayet. However, on December 22, the DDPP report recommended decommissioning the slaughterhouse, which could result in the loss of certain customers. “We no longer understand anything,” says the chairman of the board of directors.
The DDPP highlighted non-compliance in three aspects. “On the stunning of lambs we are accused that there are still “recoveries of consciousness”. But we invested 30,000 euros in a three-point clamp, the best in France, and we even received congratulations after installing this machine! Then, a temperature problem was pointed out with the carcasses, which could not be mixed with the offal, so we proposed to separate the two, a solution which clearly convinced us. Finally, we are criticized for employee overtime schedules, which are in reality marginal, and which are found in other establishments. »
“Initial progress has been recorded, but the work must be continued” says the prefecture
Jean-Michel Arrayet also points out a “problem of dialogue with a veterinary “attendant”, which has been going on for years, and which has been reported to the prefect. » Some even mention “too much pressure” which would be “almost harassment. » The prefect of Pyrénées-Atlantiques reacted, and “firmly denounces these comments, which seriously call into question the professionalism of the veterinary service of the DDPP, and in particular of the agent responsible for monitoring the Mauléon structure. »
The prefect nevertheless “reaffirms” “the irreplaceable role played by the Mauléon-Licharre slaughterhouse for the sheep and beef industry in our department. » It is for this reason “that a specific process to support the structure has been put in place, at the initiative of the State, in order to enable it to fully comply with the precise regulations which apply to slaughterhouses. » This is how “for three months, this fall, specialists from the livestock sector and the Ministry of Agriculture mobilized to advise the slaughterhouse in its compliance efforts; they drew up a concrete action plan, shared and validated by all stakeholders. To date, initial progress has been recorded, but work must be continued. »
For the moment, the declassification, a decision which will come back ultimately to the prefect, was not mentioned. The resignation of the board of directors, for its part, does not prevent the slaughterhouse and its 35 employees from operating. The daily life of the establishment, which processes 3,500 tonnes of meat per year for a turnover of 2.7 million euros, is therefore not disrupted for the moment. “But it will take a vote of the elected representatives of the urban community of the Basque Country to appoint new leaders, because they are the ones who decide on investments in particular” underlines Jean-Michel Arrayet.
As a reminder, the Pau criminal court sentenced the former director of the Licharre-Mauléon slaughterhouse to six months in prison for “deception with goods” in 2018, following a highly publicized trial. almost 14,000 euros fine for the same charge as well as “mistreatment of animals”, while three employees received fines ranging from 80 to 910 euros.