Two leading US supermarkets have suspended deliveries from a high profile organic dairy after a video showing alleged mistreatment of cows was released by an animal rights group, reports the Chicago Tribune and other local media.
Supermarket chains Kroger and Meijer both say they have suspended deliveries from Natural Prairie Dairy in the wake of newly released undercover video filmed by Animal Recovery Mission.
In the video, workers at the Texas farm are seen kicking cows or prodding them with screwdrivers and dragging cows that struggle to walk with ropes tied around their heads.
Natural Prairie Dairy, a large, family-owned farm operation with around 14,000 cows, supplies milk for private label organic brands, including leading US supermarket chains.
Meijer told the Chicago Tribune: “At this point, Meijer is not receiving any milk product from the farm identified in the most recent video.”
In a statement, Donald and Cheri De Jong, the owners of Natural Prairie Dairy, describe the video as “heavily edited” and “produced by a group that’s stated goal is to abolish all American dairy farms”.
They continue: “… the video fails to show our entire organic farm. It does not show our innovative facilities…our dedicated team members…all our cows…our lush, beautiful grasslands that our organic cows feed upon.
But the pair admit that “some of the sequences warrant internal and external investigation.”
Main image: The home page for Natural Prairie Dairy’s website