A recent Mercy For Animals Canada investigation at Chilliwack Cattle Sales, Canada’s largest dairy farm, exposed sickening cruelty to cows. Eight workers now face criminal animal cruelty charges and the company itself continues to be under investigation for its role in the abuse. The investigation was covered widely in national and international media, and prompted consumer outrage.
The following statement can be attributed to Anna Pippus, director of legal advocacy with Mercy For Animals Canada:
While we commend Saputo for finally responding to the rampant criminal animal cruelty Mercy For Animals Canada documented at the country’s largest dairy farm by cutting ties with Chilliwack Cattle Sales, it’s not enough.
If Saputo is serious about preventing cruelty to animals, it must be proactive, not reactive, in addressing animal welfare issues. Saputo has the ethical responsibility and power to ensure that animals used to produce its products are spared from sickening cruelty. Mercy For Animals Canada, along with over 100,000 consumers, continues to call on Saputo to require all of its suppliers to implement meaningful animal welfare guidelines – including establishing a zero tolerance policy for animal abuse, creating procedures for the care and transportation of sick and injured animals, and requiring all suppliers to install video monitoring systems that stream live to the internet.
This latest reactionary move from Saputo illustrates the bigger problem with Canada’s factory farming industry: the government does not regulate or oversee farming conditions, which leads to rampant unchecked animal abuse and neglect. Until governments create and enforce standards for farmed animals by incorporating agricultural Codes of Practice into law and conducting surprise inspections, consumers are safe to assume that each glass of milk contains egregious animal abuse.
Until factory farmers are forced to smarten up, the only way for consumers to ensure they’re not supporting animal cruelty is by choosing healthy, delicious and humane plant-based options at the grocery store. Visit ChooseVeg.ca to learn how.