Safeway, Kroger reject pork from farm under investigation
Warning: This story contains graphic content
SEATTLE -- Some retailers have halted purchasing pork from Iowa Select Farms after a Problem Solvers report exposed disturbing undercover video shot at the farm.
And the animal rights group that shot the video is now taking aim at Costco.
The undercover video has done exactly what the group Mercy for Animals wanted -- creating public - and now retail - outcry.
"Life for these intelligent and social animals is short, brutal and filled with needless violence, suffering and fear," said Daniel Huff of Mercy for Animals.
Huff says the group's investigator, posing as a worker over the last three months, shot the video inside the fourth largest pork provider in the country.
Costco, which stocks the farm's products, condemned some of what was captured on tape.
"Some of them are absolutely uncalled for, and they need to be addressed, no question," said Costco spokesman Craig Wilson.
But Safeway and Kroger on Thursday announced they're halting all purchases of the farm's pork. They want to see what an investigation reveals.
The secret camera captured images of piglets being tossed, a worker knocking a piglet's head against the floor, sows with uterine bulges and living in narrow gestation crates not much bigger than their bodies.
Also seen were more than a dozen pigs with open sores and, according to Huff, "Workers ripping out the testicles of conscious piglets without any pain killers."
In an interview on Wednesday, Iowa Select Farms called the footage an inaccurate picture of its operation.
"We have a zero tolerance for any kind of animal abuse," said Dr. Howard Hill of Iowa Select Farms.
But Huff tells a different story.
"These abuses originated from the top down, company management-trained and instructed employees," he said.
Costco defends its decision not to boycott the farm or its distributor, JBS Swift.
"It's easy to walk away," said Wilson. "It's easy to go, 'No, we're not going to do that.' It's better for everybody to say, 'Look, we can make this better.'"
The animal rights group believes much of what it exposed is cruel and criminal, but admits most are commonly accepted practices. What the group really wants are new laws to protect farm animals.
Iowa Select Farms says it has launched its own investigation, and has hired an independent investigator to analyze the video.
The Mercy for Animals investigation comes as Iowa lawmakers consider a bill making it illegal to record video or audio without consent from the farm's owner.
SEATTLE -- Some retailers have halted purchasing pork from Iowa Select Farms after a Problem Solvers report exposed disturbing undercover video shot at the farm.
And the animal rights group that shot the video is now taking aim at Costco.
The undercover video has done exactly what the group Mercy for Animals wanted -- creating public - and now retail - outcry.
"Life for these intelligent and social animals is short, brutal and filled with needless violence, suffering and fear," said Daniel Huff of Mercy for Animals.
Huff says the group's investigator, posing as a worker over the last three months, shot the video inside the fourth largest pork provider in the country.
Costco, which stocks the farm's products, condemned some of what was captured on tape.
"Some of them are absolutely uncalled for, and they need to be addressed, no question," said Costco spokesman Craig Wilson.
But Safeway and Kroger on Thursday announced they're halting all purchases of the farm's pork. They want to see what an investigation reveals.
The secret camera captured images of piglets being tossed, a worker knocking a piglet's head against the floor, sows with uterine bulges and living in narrow gestation crates not much bigger than their bodies.
Also seen were more than a dozen pigs with open sores and, according to Huff, "Workers ripping out the testicles of conscious piglets without any pain killers."
In an interview on Wednesday, Iowa Select Farms called the footage an inaccurate picture of its operation.
"We have a zero tolerance for any kind of animal abuse," said Dr. Howard Hill of Iowa Select Farms.
But Huff tells a different story.
"These abuses originated from the top down, company management-trained and instructed employees," he said.
Costco defends its decision not to boycott the farm or its distributor, JBS Swift.
"It's easy to walk away," said Wilson. "It's easy to go, 'No, we're not going to do that.' It's better for everybody to say, 'Look, we can make this better.'"
The animal rights group believes much of what it exposed is cruel and criminal, but admits most are commonly accepted practices. What the group really wants are new laws to protect farm animals.
Iowa Select Farms says it has launched its own investigation, and has hired an independent investigator to analyze the video.
The Mercy for Animals investigation comes as Iowa lawmakers consider a bill making it illegal to record video or audio without consent from the farm's owner.
