Yesterday another dairy
worker, Stephen Troublefield, was convicted of three counts of criminal animal
cruelty after a 2014 Mercy For Animals investigation documented him abusing
cows at Winchester Dairy near Roswell, New Mexico. Troublefield was sentenced
to 364 days of supervised probation and 25 hours of community service. He was
also ordered to pay a $100 fine.
Footage from the
investigation shows multiple dairy workers cruelly beating cows, dragging them
with tractors, and shocking them in the genitals with electric prods. Two other
Winchester Dairy workers, Jose Luis Zuniga-Lira and Cesar Morales-Iniguez, have
already been convicted of a total of five counts of animal cruelty.
Watch the footage that led
to the conviction here:
MFA praises the New Mexico
Livestock Board and the Chaves County District Attorney’s Office for pursuing
justice in this important case.
At the time of MFA’s
investigation, Winchester Dairy sold milk to Leprino Foods, the world’s largest
mozzarella cheese maker and a supplier to nearly all major pizza chains,
including Pizza Hut, Domino’s, and Papa John’s. After the investigation,
Leprino Foods terminated its contract with Winchester Dairy, and following
discussions with MFA, announced one of the most comprehensive animal welfare policies ever
adopted by a major U.S. dairy company.