A group of concerned citizens will rally on Friday to protest the planned establishment of a facility to process kangaroos for pet meat.
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A group of about 20 people will gather at the Loddon Shire Council offices in High St, Wedderburn to voice their concerns about the proposed facility at Inglewood.
Campaspe Meat Company has submitted an application to the council to process about 1000 kangaroo carcasses each week before distributing the product to another site to be processed and packaged into pet food.
Michelle Mead, one of the organisers of the rally, said tomorrow's gathering would take the form of a visual protest to inform people of the proposal.
She said the said processing of such large numbers of kangaroos would have a major impact on kangaroo populations which were already struggling as a result of the 2020 bushfires and the continuous loss of habitat due to land clearing for housing.
"We're also worried about the system (to obtain the kangaroo carcasses)," Ms Mead said.
"Shooters will be out around dusk and dawn and aim for the big alpha males which will weaken the kangaroo population and weaken the gene pool.
"And in those times of low visibility, they may shoot females who are pouched or are with foot joeys which will need rescuing, putting a strain on wildlife carers."
The proposed site of the processing facility is a former abattoir at Inglewood, which the rally plans to visit tomorrow.
"Inglewood is a great town, a gold mining area and a lot of walking tracks which is ideal for eco-tourism post pandemic," Ms Mead said.
"Wildlife can play a major role in eco tourism. Surely this beautiful town would prefer to be promoting its unique wildlife rather than killing our most recognisable, iconic symbol?"
The rally will begin at the council offices in Wedderburn at 10am. Rally participants will carry protest signs and be divided into groups of 10 as per COVID-19 restrictions.
It will then depart to Inglewood and convene at the proposed site of the processing facility with organisers happy to answer any questions from passers-by.
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