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As we shared last week, we are taking immediate actions to ensure our high standards of animal welfare are being executed at each of our supplying farms.". One exception is Chobani, which last week said it was ending the production of its Chobani Ultra-Filtered Milk,which launched in February. Calves were stabbed and beaten with steel rebars, hit in the mouth and face with hard plastic milking bottles, kneed in the spine, burned in the face with hot branding irons, subjected to extreme temperatures, provided with improper nutrition, and denied medical attention.". Temperature readings show it was more than 100 degrees inside their hutches. fairlife is committed to the humane and compassionate care of animals. An undercover video provided by Animal Recovery Mission shows workers allegedly abusing animals at Fair Oaks Farms in Newton County. (Mykal McEldowney/IndyStar) WATCH VIDEO The controversy led to businesses dropping Fairlife products, including Stack & Van Til, Jewel-Osco and Tonys Fresh Market. Fair Oaks Farms is the flagship farm for Fairlife, a national brand of higher protein, higher calcium and lower fat milk that's produced at a network of dairy farms and distributed by Coca-Cola. An undercover video provided by Animal Recovery Mission shows workers allegedly abusing animals at Fair Oaks Farms in Newton County. A dozen Chicago-area grocers pulled Fairlife from their shelves amid widespread backlash. "I can't get into the details at this time for the safety of our investigators, but I will say there's more to this than what was released (Tuesday).". In June 2019, ARM published a video (warning it's brutal) of the investigators most shocking footage, which quickly went viral. According to the USDA, cows raised on organic farms may not be given growth hormones of any type. "For any case, we need to review each act individually to determine if it meets the states definition of cruelty or abuse," said Denise Derrer, Public Information Director at the Indiana State Board of Animal Health, who is helping with the investigation. three times as many greenhouse gas emissions. And, when cows died of sickness, their dead bodies were dumped outside out of the view of those attending Fair Oaks Dairy Adventure tours; and once cows could no longer produce milk, they were sent to slaughter for meat or dog food. "The expos of animal abuse in the Fair Oaks Farm network is chilling. The plants featured in the video are an invasive perennial species that is rampant on farms all over the midwest. Is the Government Really Paying Farmers to Destroy Crops and Kill Animals? Strack's CEO, Jeff Strack, said the Highland-based company would no longer carry Fairlife products like Core Power protein shakes at its 20 supermarkets in Northwest Indiana. We didn't spur it on but we are glad it happened. But not his teammates. In November 2019, The Times reported that at least eight federal lawsuits had been filed against Fairlifefrom across the country, including California, Florida and Indiana. She spends her time monitoring traffic and weather reports, scanning crime logs and reading court documents. "With recent events involving Fair Oaks Farms, Strack & Van Til will be removing all Fair Oaks and related products until further notice," he said. Organic dairy farms must also allow their cows to be able to graze outside. Driver in ditch nearly 5 times the legal limit, Porter County police say. The footage went viral, and the organization also published a 125-page document reporting what the activist witnessed including extreme and violent animal abuse within the first few hours on the job. The fifth person is a truck driver who works for a third party. Because of these laws, there is no way to know for sure what is going on at Fairlifes farms. WATCH NOW: Fair Oaks Farms reports no further incidents following reemergence of videos. Does Fairlife publicize the audit? FAIR OAKS The Newton County prosecutor says a witness has corroborated allegations from a suspect that an animal welfare investigator encour. The Dairy Report 061119. May 27 2021, Published 1:51 p.m. "At Jewel-Osco we strive to maintain high animal welfare standards across all areas of business, and work in partnership with our vendors to ensure those standards are upheld," the company stated in a news release Wednesday. They are distributed by the Coca-Cola Company in the U.S. graphic video filmed at Indiana's Fair Oaks Farms, new footage was released by Animal Recovery Mission, thousands of smaller dairy farms closing for business, National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM), Grocery stores pull popular milk brand from shelves after disturbing video surfaces, the Chicago-based company is being sued for fraud, which still has a 4.5-star rating on TripAdvisor, retailers including Jewel-Osco, Tonys Fresh Market, Casey's and Family Express have stopped selling Fairlife products, The new laws will go into effect on July 1. Claims like these inspire people to choose these products, because they believe that they are better. Ex-Fair Oaks Farms worker gets probation for abusing calves A man accused of abusing calves on the large northwestern Indiana farm has been sentenced to a year of probation after a felony. The form however, doesn't specifically define what constitutes abuse. One cup of regular 2% milk has 120 calories, 11 grams of sugar, 5 grams of fat, 8 grams of protein and 30% of the daily calcium recommendation. Fairlife is aware of the lawsuit and, in a statement provided to TODAY, said: "We are aware of the lawsuit and are reviewing it. Let Food Dive's free newsletter keep you informed, straight from your inbox. Fair Oaks Farms representatives said Saturday no other incidents have happened since the videos were released in 2019. 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They also announced the farm's plans to install video surveillance on the property. FAIR OAKS Mike McCloskey said he wished an animal activist organization that spent nearly six months clandestinely filming the operations of, FAIR OAKS | Fortune 60 company Coca-Cola is partnering with a Northwest Indiana farm, hoping that a reinvented, more nutrient-rich milk can do. Animal Welfare Experts | Video Update | Fair Oaks Farms You can cancel at any time. Lawsuits are a part of the regular course of business in today's food and beverage industry. A full investigation of all aspects of the video is underway, during and after which disciplinary action will be taken, including termination and criminal prosecution, of any and all employees and managers who have violated either our animal care practices or the law or both. "We are proud to report that we have not had another incident on our farm.". So, in this instance our policy of cow care training "see something, say something" worked. 2-year-old animal abuse video goes viral again, renewing calls to Couto's Miami-based Animal Recovery Mission released video last week showing calves at Fair Oaks being thrown into their huts, hit and kicked in the head, dragged by the ears and burned with . In response, multiple stores stopped carrying Fairlife products, and numerous consumers boycotted the brand. Copyright 2023 Green Matters. ARMs Fairlife investigation proved that there is no way to truly know what is happening behind a farm's closed doors. However, before ARM released its footage of Fair Oaks, Fairlife had made plenty of claims in regards to animal welfare. When reached by TODAY via email, a Fair Oaks Farms representative provided the following statement: "This is the same video that was released and covered last week, which includes footage that took place several months ago. On Tuesday, the sheriff's office disclosed the suspects' names. The actions depicted on the Animal Recovery Mission video are unacceptable, a USDA spokesperson said. You can cancel at any time. By Clinton Griffiths June 10, 2019. Indiana State Veterinarian Bret D. Marsh, DVM, has directed BOAH staff to collaborate with local law enforcement regarding any appropriate next steps they may take.. After reviewing the video frame-by-frame, those three employees are responsible for the overwhelming majority of offenses seen in this video. Warning: the video is very disturbing. People have been drinking cow's milk for thousands of years, but the nature of commercial farming has undergone vast changes in the past century. "But Fairlifes and its founders 'promise' is a sham. Its signature product is a form of ultrafiltered milk that has more protein and less sugar than traditional milk. Fair Oaks Farms is based in Fair Oaks, Indiana. Derrer told TODAY that prior to the first video's release, her office had never received a complaint about Fair Oaks Farms. Members worked as employees while wearing a hidden camera. Their cows do not receive 'extraordinary care and comfort.' All of the brand's beverages are made using a patented, cold-filtration process where milk molecules are separated by different filters and then recombined in a formula with more favorable macro nutrient ratios. Fair Oaks Farms notified Fairlife that they immediately isolated dairy supply from the dairy identified in the video to suspend all sourcing from that location We fully support and respect the proactive approach that Fairlife and Fair Oaks Farms have taken and we continue to stay in contact with them to lend any support they need.". So even though Fairlife claims to be making efforts to improve animal welfare and sustainability at its supplier farms, there is no way for consumers to truly monitor it; plus, exploitation of the cows reproductive system and eventual slaughter are both unavoidable in the dairy industry. A video released by an animal rights organization shows young calves being kicked in the head, dead calves' bodies piled together in the dirt , FAIR OAKS An audit of the dairy farms that make up Fair Oaks Farms indicates the farms are operating within the standards of the dairy indus. You can read more about the audits that Fairlife pledged to take on the brands website; however, the brand did claim to already have governance measures in place before the investigation, so many customers may find it difficult to trust these new procedures. "We have staff in the farm sites regularly," she said. No reports of animal abuse or neglect have been filed with the agency since the farms founding in the mid-1990s, Derrer said in an email. Of the five, four were our employees and one was a 3rd party truck driver who was picking up calves. Then I searched for news on this and was surprised it was from 2019. FAIR OAKS One of the men accused of abusing animals at Fair Oaks Farms was arrested Wednesday, while the other two are still being sought by law enforcement. Names released of 3 charged in Fair Oaks Farms animal abuse case Family Express, the Valparaiso-based chain of convenience stores and gas stations, was named the best convenience store in the state of Indiana. Time passed, and the product found its way back onto store shelves. The video posts also appear to show drug possession and use by farm employees. Months ago, when I first learned of the undercover activity, I requested a 3rd party review and we went through a re-training process throughout the dairies. Mike McCloskey, owner of Fair Oaks, released a video Thursday apologizing after an und A University of Oxford study found that on average, cows milk produces about three times as many greenhouse gas emissions than vegan milks. It is a shock and an eye-opener for us to discover that under our watch, we had employees who showed disregard for our animals, our processes and for the rule of law. Provided. Still, a 2021 report from the World Animal Protection and Compassion in World Farming found many food companies are not doing enough to prioritize animal welfare. Fair Oaks Farms said the company's progress has been regularly documented on their website fofarms.com/progress where they write about efforts concerning video surveillance, mentorship, employee care, training, monitoring of facilities and staff, audits and animal welfare experts. , https://t.co/F5bRlpWmVD This had to be the most disgusting & disturbing thing Ive watched. STAFF REPORTS. On Wednesday, the company issued a new statement on its Facebook page taking "full responsibility" for the matter. Fairlifes website states that after ARM exposed Fairlifes cruelty, the dairy company stopped buying milk from Fair Oaks, and established a robust welfare program with their other farms, which Fairlife has put over $8 million into. Police Arrest Suspect in Fair Oaks Farms Investigation Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. A dairy farm in Indiana has come under immense scrutiny after an undercover video released by an animal rights group revealed newborn calves being abused by farm employees. IE 11 is not supported. Shot in 2018 by an undercover activist group investigator at Fair Oaks Farms, then the massive flagship dairy of Fairlife, the four-minute video depicts workers throwing, dragging, kicking and hitting newborn calves. The truck driver, who was responsible for picking up the calves, will not be allowed on Fair Oaks Farms again. Three former employees who were seen kicking and throwing calves in the first video released by ARM were charged with animal cruelty last week. FAIR OAKS The Newton County Sheriff's Department has requested the names of former Fair Oaks Farms employees shown abusing young calves inavideo released by an animal rights organizationTuesday, according to a department news release. Please feel free to contact me if you have any comments or questions. I have personally reached out to ARM's founder, Richard Couto, to discuss a more symbiotic relationship but he has yet to reach back. As they considered what may or may not impact their ability to . On June 4, 2019, videos depicting employees abusing calves were released by ARM following an undercover investigation by the animal rights group. "None of them have ever seen anything close to what was depicted on the video, even when performing their duties in the calf areas.". Mike McCloskey owns both Fairlife dairy products and Fair Oaks Farms. Yesterdays protest outside of @CocaCola headquarters in #Atlanta urging them to drop @Fairlife milk products following @ARMInvestigatios undercover expos of horrific #calf abuse. Fair Oaks Farm, an agritourism destination, is located in Fair Oaks, off Interstate 65 in Newton County. The employees featured in the video exercised a complete and total disregard for the documented training that all employees go through to ensure the comfort, safety and well-being of our animals. A roundup of crime stories from throughout the Region during the past 24 hours. As the larger dairy milk category has struggled, premium offerings have largely been a promising growth story. "This is hardly the response you would expect from an organization that gets it. This ARM video shines a light on an area that despite our thorough training, employee on-boarding procedures and overall commitment to animal welfare needs improvement. It's a major reason why Coca-Cola acquired the remainder of Fairlife. The public on both sides of the controversial video was passionate about what it saw. For further information on the progress of our commitments, visit http://fairoaksfarmsprogress.com.". Driver in ditch nearly 5 times the legal limit, Porter County police say. In a public statement in 2019,Fair Oaks Farms Chairman Mike McCloskeyacknowledged that four of the people shown committing alleged abuses were Fair Oaks Farms employees, and one person was a third-party truck driver who was transporting calves. UPDATE: Criminal probe launched into Fair Oaks Farms employees; companies pull products. ", "Going undercover in the dairy industry, we always find the same crimes committed against the animals," he said. They must also sign the Dairy Cattle Care Ethics Agreement on an annual basis. And I watched the video, said Diane Mason, a reader from Melbourne, Florida, who reached out to the Tribune by email Thursday. Please enter valid email address to continue. I am committed to never again have to watch a video of our animals suffering the way that they suffered," McCloskey said June 6, 2019, in a video posted to Fair Oaks Farms' Facebook page. The Newton . (WTHR) The Newton County Sheriff's Office has charged three people in connection with the Fair Oaks Farms animal abuse video. The suit alleges that this led many consumers to believe they were were paying a premium for that standard of care. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Pending orders of Fairlife products were suspended at Family Express, according to a news release issued by the company. "Furthermore, we requested this be elevated to the attorney general of the State of Indiana.". Gardozo-Vasquez - one of three former Fair Oaks Farms workers charged in connection to scenes of abuse that set off national protests and boycotts of Indiana's largest dairy - had also been. In addition to the state's laws, the board refers to FARM when it comes to industry standards for handling and care. Now, the Chicago-based company is being sued for fraud since it promoted the extraordinary care and comfort of its cows on product labels and charged twice as much for its milk products. Fairlife Milk: Why Animal Abuse Investigation Prompted Boycotts He also observed that immediately after giving birth, mother cows were separated from their newborn calves, who were placed into confined sheds, while the mothers were sent right back to the milking rotary, sometimes with their placentas still hanging out of their bodies. All Rights Reserved. Get the free daily newsletter read by industry experts. As a matter of routine and practice, Fairlifes cows are tortured, kicked, stomped on, body slammed, stabbed with steel rebar, thrown off the side of trucks, dragged through the dirt by their ears and left to die unattended in over 100-degree heat. It worked. The organization also noticed a surge of interest this week in its nearly 3-year-old Fair Oaks investigation. The impact of coronavirus and circumstances arising from 2019 have led to the termination of three major executive positions at Fair Oaks Farm. But that doesn't mean that all farming operations are large-scale operations like Fair Oaks Farms, which has 37,000 cows and is the largest dairy farm in the state of Indiana. Pittsburgh woman missing for 31 years found alive in Puerto Rico, Alex Murdaugh found guilty of murders of wife and son. Consumer fraud lawsuits were filed across the country against Fairlife and later consolidated in Chicago federal court. However, this footage was a wake-up call to dairy consumers everywhere. In the initial statement issued Tuesday on social media, Fair Oaks founder Mike McCloskey said four of the people shown committing alleged abuses were Fair Oaks Farms employees and each had been or were being fired. Fairlife's website states that after ARM exposed Fairlife's cruelty, the dairy company stopped buying milk from Fair Oaks, and established "a robust welfare program" with their other farms, which Fairlife has put over $8 million into. FAIR OAKS, Ind. On June 12, 2019, ARM released a cut of the investigators footage documenting cruelty on the dairy farm, which was taken with a hidden body camera. I am and will continue to be deeply involved in the resolution of this matter, down to every one of our employees, so that I can guarantee that these actions never again occur on any of our farms. There is likely still animal cruelty on Fairlife's farms in 2021. Fair Oaks Farms said that people were harassing the business and its staff via phone calls, messages, social media and in person during deliveries. Now, as we come up on the two-year anniversary of the Fairlife milk animal abuse controversy, many are wondering exactly what happened at Fair Oaks Farms, why exactly people are boycotting Fairlife, and what they can do to stop animal abuse. We are proud to report that we have not had another incident on our farm.. Keep reading for a refresher on what went down, everything we know about Fairlifes treatment of the cows, and for our guidance on easy ways to protest companies that treat animals unfairly. We apologize for any inconvenience," spokeswoman Mary Frances Trucco told CBS Chicago in an email. , Webinar FAIR OAKS The Newton County prosecutor says a witness has corroborated allegations from a suspect that an animal welfare investigator encour, Ford is expanding its workforce again at the Chicago Assembly Plant on the banks of the Calumet River, just across the state line in Hegewisch. Fairlife said it hasimmediately suspend deliveries and will provide more animal welfare training for employees. The undercover video shows various forms of abuse against the calves. Coca-Cola and others agree to $21M settlement for Fairlife animal abuse Fairlife's 2021 stewardship report said it spent more than $8 million on supporting animal welfare standards at its suppliers and exploring new methods and technologies to improve animal care.. People are starting to do their own homework on this.