Fair Oaks Farms investigated after animal welfare activist hides clandestine employees

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Fair Oaks Farms is a popular destination for agritourism and offers daily tours to "explore our dairy farms and give them a fun preview of a cow's life," according to its website. It is also owned by the company that produces the Fairlife dairy products distributed by Coca-Cola.

However, an animal recovery mission (ARM) investigator who landed a job with the calves at Fair Oaks Farms captured graphic images that visitors probably can not see during their visits.

The ARM video shows employees kicking, pushing and slamming to the ground. Newborn calves that have not been fed nipple artificial rubber during the feeding process.

The calves were deprived of adequate nutrition, and the video shows employees stabbing and beating calves with steel reinforcing bars and scoring irons, ARM said. In addition, the employees sat on the calves, which was often too heavy for the animals.

The transport of newborn calves was violent, said ARM. In the video, some employees throw calves into the trailer or push them hard.

Law Enforcement Forces Investigate Allegations

The Newton County Sheriff's Office has launched an independent investigation into allegations of animal cruelty. He indicated that he had asked for the names of the employees featured on the video and that he was looking for people who had witnessed the animal cruelty and had not reported it.

"We recognize the need to treat animals with humanity and to hold individuals who have gone beyond acceptable farm management practices to account for their actions," said Sheriff Thomas VanVleet in a statement.

Newton County attorney Jeff Drinski said he would likely sue the perpetrators on Monday, once the former employees are found.

Agricultural Founder: Employees responsible for abuse were dismissed

Fair Oaks Farms founder Mike McCloskey said five employees were responsible for several animal cruelty cases. Four were Fair Oaks employees, and they were all fired, McCloskey said.

"I am disgusted and take full responsibility for the actions presented in the film, as this goes against everything we stand for in the care and comfort of cows," wrote McCloskey in a statement. a Facebook message. "The employees featured in the video have shown total disregard for the documented training followed by all employees to ensure the comfort, safety and welfare of our animals."

Fair Oaks Farms said in April that it had commissioned an independent auditor to review its animal welfare practices and that the audit was well received.

In a statement, fairlife suspended milk deliveries from the dairy identified in the video.

"The dairy identified in the video represents less than 5% of the total supply of fairlife milk.About 30 dairies support fairlife, therefore we visit all the dairies suppliers and conduct independent audits in the next 30 days to check all aspects of farming practices on farms, including all practices in training, management and audit, "said fairlife.

"At The Coca-Cola Company, we take animal welfare very seriously, and we expect our suppliers to act with the utmost integrity and to comply with all laws, including consumer laws. animal welfare, "Coca-Cola said in a statement. "We have been in contact with fairlife about this situation and have full confidence in their management team to address this issue urgently with Fair Oaks Farms, a third-party fairlife supplier."
Located about 75 km south of Chicago, Fair Oaks Farms is a popular spot for agritourism.

Retailers give up fairlife

Several supermarket chains draw fairlife products from its shelves, including Jewel-Osco, Family Express and Tony's Fresh Market.

"At Jewel-Osco, we strive to maintain high standards of animal welfare in all areas of our business and work in partnership with our suppliers to ensure these standards are met," said a spokesperson. of the company, which has 187 stores in the Chicago area. , Indiana and Iowa.

Family Express, which operates convenience stores in northwestern and north-central Indiana, has discontinued its products and has chosen Organic Valley as a new dairy supplier.

Drug allegations

While most critics focused on claims of animal cruelty, ARM also wrote in its report that they suspected marijuana plants were being grown on the Fair Oaks Farm property. In addition, ARM alleged that employees smoke and sell marijuana and cocaine when they work.

Bill Will Make Animal Cruelty a Federal Crime

McCloskey denied that drugs are grown and sold at Fair Oaks Farms.

"The plants featured in the video are an invasive perennial species that plagues Midwestern farms," ​​said McCloskey. The owner acknowledged that there had been drug use by the employees on the properties but this was solved by the police forces.

Each year, more than 600,000 visitors flock to Fair Oaks Farms, about 75 km south of Chicago. The farm has 36,000 cows and is a popular destination for agritourism. It is surrounded by a museum, a souvenir shop and a hotel.

CNN's Rebekah Riess contributed to this report.

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