Arrest made for alleged abuse at Perdue contract farm

A worker for a contract farmer who was raising chickens for Perdue Farms in Richmond County, North Carolina, has been arrested on animal abuse charges. The charges were filed after an undercover video depicting abuse at a broiler farm was posted online by animal rights group Mercy for Animals and presented to authorities by an attorney representing Mercy for Animals.
Throughout the video, Mercy for Animals targets Perdue and in words printed over the footage, questions the company’s animal welfare policies.
Perdue Farms stated that it is committed to taking aggressive actions to hold those involved in the abuse accountable, as well as to prevent similar incidents in the future.
“We have seen the video taken by Mercy for Animals on a farm raising chickens for Perdue,” Perdue Farms said in a statement. “We are appalled by the mistreatment and abuse by a contract catching crew and a farm worker shown in the video. We are committed to working with law enforcement to identify everyone involved and hope the Mercy for Animals will cooperate to facilitate those efforts.”
Perdue Farms thanked Mercy for Animals for “uncovering clear animal abuse by an individual on a farm” raising chickens for the company, as well as to law enforcement officers for taking prompt action against the alleged suspect.

Perdue vows to keep improving bird welfare

In a statement, Perdue said it shares a common goal with Mercy for Animals in that it wants to prevent animal abuse and improve poultry care.
“We are actively seeking to improve the way we raise chickens,” the company stated. “We recently created a new vice president level position within the company, Chief Animal Welfare Officer and Farm Family Advocate, and appointed Mike Levengood, a 31-year veteran at Perdue, to that position. Mike is leading our efforts to improve animal care and to develop closer relationships with the farmers who care for those animals. We are currently evaluating many of the practices that Mercy for Animals highlights, including lighting and enrichments.
“Going forward, we promise to report on the process and our progress.”

Tyson fires workers over alleged abuse of chickens

Tyson Foods has terminated two employees for violating the company’s animal handling policy at its poultry processing plant near Carthage, Mississippi.
The alleged abuse of chickens at the plant was shown in a video that was released on October 27 by animal rights group Mercy for Animals. Narrated by actress Candice Bergen, the video, which was filmed by a Mercy for Animals investigator who went undercover and gained employment at Tyson, shows scenes of workers mishandling the birds, including throwing them and punching them.
In the video, Bergen explained the “investigator reported the animal abuse to management on many occasions, but observed no corrective actions taken.”
However, according to a statement issued by Tyson Foods, the company has been “investigating a claim of animal mistreatment in this area of the plant since late last week.”
The statement added that the company is “appalled by the actions shown in this video.”
“We believe proper animal handling is an important moral and ethical obligation. Everyone who works with live animals in our plants – including the person who secretly shot this video – is trained in proper animal handling and instructed to immediately report anything they believe is inappropriate. Workers are encouraged to report bad behavior to their supervisor as well as the Tyson Foods compliance and ethics hotline,” the company stated.
Mercy For Animals has stated that it submitted a misdemeanor complaint with Mississippi authorities, but to Tyson’s knowledge, no criminal charges had been filed by any government agency.

920 Foster Farms chickens killed by intruders with golf club

Authorities in Fresno County, California, are searching for suspects who allegedly broke into a Foster Farms poultry house and killed 920 birds with a golf club.
According to a press release issued by the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office on September 30, deputies responded to a report of a burglary on September 20, shortly before 8:30 a.m. The investigation revealed that the suspects pulled back a portion of the fence and entered the building. Once inside, the suspects used a golf club, and possibly another similar type instrument to slaughter the chickens.  A piece of what appeared to be a golf club was found at the scene.
The property where the crime occurred is located in Caruthers, which is southwest of Fresno.
“Whoever did something like this is pretty sick,” Deputy Chris Curtice told the Los Angeles Times. “It would take a long time to do it. … People should be alarmed at something like that.”
Foster Farms has estimated the loss at about $5,000.
The company is offering a reward for information that would lead to the arrest and prosecution of the people responsible for the crime.
Foster Farms issued the following statement: “It is the express policy of Foster Farms to treat its birds humanely and with compassion.”

Tyson ends contract with hog farm where animal abuse occurred

Tyson Foods decided to end its contract relationship with an Oklahoma hog farm after a video of abuse at the farm was released. The video, distributed by the animal rights group Mercy For Animals and shown on NBC, showed farm workers striking pigs and slamming piglets into a concrete floor, and in one instance a worker was videoed throwing a bowling ball at a pig, hitting it in the head.
The farm where the abuse took place was identified as West Coast Farms in Henryetta, Okla.
"We're extremely disappointed by the mistreatment shown in the video and will not tolerate this kind of animal mishandling," Mickelson wrote in an email to The Associated Press. "We are immediately terminating our contract with this farmer and will take possession of the animals remaining on the farm. We're serious about proper animal handling and expect the farmers who supply us to treat animals with care and to be trained and certified in responsible animal care practices. It's consistent with our core values to 'serve as stewards of the animals 'entrusted to us."