NEARLY three quarters of people in the North West want the UK to ban imports with lower welfare standards, the RSPCA has revealed.

The charity has launched a petition calling on the Government to keep its manifesto commitment as 74% of residents in the North West agree that animal welfare standards in trade agreements should not be lowered.

A US researcher has warned the UK not to import animal products from the US, as they will not meet the UK's high welfare standards due to the methods of production.

In a video detailing the poor conditions suffered by many US farm animals, Farm Sanctuary Research Director Lauri Torgerson, (former Director of Research at Mercy For Animals), said: “Consumers want to know that the animals they are eating have been treated well, at least while they were alive, and we can’t say that in the United States, at all.

“Our industrial animal system is designed to benefit huge, often multinational corporations at the expense of animal welfare, farmer well-being and the earth. I think the UK has been a leader in animal welfare, and has a way to go still, but buying animal products from the US would dilute all the hard work that’s gone into improving all the systems there.

"I think the average consumer in the UK would be disappointed to know that the products they’re buying could be coming from systems in the US that don’t support the rights of animals or humans, or the earth.”

Chris Sherwood, RSPCA Chief Executive, said: “This video from the US gives a stark warning about what could end up on our supermarket shelves if the UK Government does not act now to legally protect our welfare standards.

"We know this is a concern for consumers and without clear legislation banning food produced to lower welfare standards from our shores, we risk setting back animal welfare by decades.

"This will cause the suffering of more animals to produce the food on our plates and failing to protect British farmers.

“We urge UK shoppers to sign this petition in the hope that the Government will listen to the British public and protect our hard-won farm animal welfare.”