Live Animal Trade, Animal Labor, and Floating Barns

Gizem Haspolat was the final guest of Hayvanât Talks in 2025 with her talk titled "Live Animal Trade, Animal Labor, and 'Floating Barns. " The speaker explained that the import ships, referred to as "floating barns" because they carry tens of thousands of cattle, are part of a massive economy that made Turkey the world's second-largest live cattle importer in 2018. Drawing from the "cheap meat" policy that live animal imports have shaped in Turkey since 2010, the researcher, who presented her doctoral research from Rice University, touched upon the concepts of the "Industrial Animal Complex," "animal capitalism," "lively commodities," and "metabolic labor." Haspolat examined the import-dependent livestock economy within a critical framework, using insights she gained from customs offices, agriculture and livestock fairs, and interviews with veterinary doctors.