Radiolab What is a Pig Worth?
66 snips
May 1, 2026 
Wayne Hsiung, animal rights activist and co-founder of Direct Action Everywhere, tells how a farm intrusion and rescue of two sick piglets sparked a courtroom showdown. He centers the trial on the piglets and forces jurors to wrestle with monetary versus intrinsic value. The story probes how law, morality, and our relationship with animals collide.
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Night Breakin Into Smithfield And Saving Two Piglets
- Wayne Hsiung and Direct Action Everywhere broke into a Smithfield pig farm in 2017 and filmed rows of mother pigs in tiny metal crates and sick piglets.
- They removed two injured piglets, Lily and Lizzie, and published the footage, triggering criminal charges and a New York Times story.
The Legal Value Paradox For Animals
- Theft law required the jury to consider whether the piglets had "value," forcing an economic framing on living animals.
- Wayne used expert testimony showing rehabilitation costs exceeded farm market value (~$40), creating a paradox where moral rescue argued as legal defense could imply zero or negative monetary value.
Lily And Lizzie Became Central Evidence
- Wayne named the two piglets Lily and Lizzie and called veterinarians to testify the piglets were severely malnourished and unlikely to survive without care.
- A vet estimated a <5% survival chance and rehab costs that made each piglet economically worthless to the farm.
