MOD in battlefield training on pigs row 19.11.12
12The Ministry of Defence has defended sending surgeons serving in the British Army to controversial medical training in Denmark involving shooting live pigs to replicate battlefield wounds.
Each animal is shot and then operated on at a course provided at NATO's training facilities in Jaegerspris.
The practice, formerly known as Operation Danish Bacon, has been described by animal rights groups as "impossible to justify medically, ethically and educationally".
An MOD spokeswoman said: "This training provides invaluable experience, exposing our surgical teams to the specific challenges posed by the injuries of modern armed conflict.
"This training has helped save lives on operations and by participating in the Danish exercises we minimise the overall number of animals used."