Kroger plans to temporarily stop buying milk from an organic dairy farm that’s facing allegations of extreme animal cruelty and unsanitary conditions for its dairy cows.
The supermarket chain’s decision comes after an animal rights group released shocking video this week from an undercover investigation at Natural Prairie Dairy Farms.
The Texas farm houses approximately 14,000 cows. But the company is planning to open a second organic dairy in Newton County, Indiana, just about 70 miles south of Chicago.
Animal Recovery Mission, the group responsible for the video, has been exposing what they call the systematic abuse of cows inside the dairy industry over the last several months.
The video from Natural Prairie Dairy Farms is part of the third major investigation into the dairy industry that the group has unveiled so far this year.
The first targeted Fair Oaks Farms and Fairlife products.
In the latest case, the animal group’s undercover employee recorded cows being kicked, hit with shovels and stabbed with screwdrivers by who they say are vet tech crews and animal caregivers at Natural Prairie Dairy Farms. The group also documented cows that were tied in uncomfortable positions for hours, falling into cesspools and almost drowning.
According to Animal Recovery Mission, the dairy has surveillance cameras installed all over the farm, making it impossible for management not to be aware of what is happening. ARM has submitted its evidence to the local authorities in Texas for investigation.
Beyond Kroger, Natural Prairie Dairy supplies the milk used by organic store brands around the country at Target, Costco, Safeway and Publix.
Kroger announced on Twitter Thursday that it has a “long-standing commitment to the humane treatment of animals.” The supermarket chain said it’ll suspend milk purchases from the Texas farm until an investigation is complete.
So far, Natural Prairie Dairy has not answered ABC7’s requests for a response.
Source: ABC7
