Tuesday, 11 December 2018 08:43

Cow basher takes hit from MPI

Written by 
Farmwatch released footage of a Northland sharemilker beating a cow with a steel pipe. Farmwatch released footage of a Northland sharemilker beating a cow with a steel pipe.

MPI has filed charges against an individual after receiving a video in June this year of a Northland sharemilker hitting cows with a pipe and other objects.

Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) manager of compliance investigations, Gary Orr, says MPI has done a full investigation.

“Six charges have been filed against an individual under the Animal Welfare Act,” says Orr. “As the matter is now before the courts, we will be making no further comment at this time.”

Hidden camera video showing cows repeatedly being hit with a pipe, a stick and a steel pipe during milking was supplied in June by the animal advocacy group Farmwatch.

At the time, Feds animal welfare spokesman Chris Lewis said the sharemilker should “get the eff out of our industry”. Lewis described the video as “shocking” and said there was no room in the dairy industry for farmers who mistreated their animals.

The owners of a Northland farm at the centre of a video also at the time said they were shocked and deeply saddened. The unidentified owners said they would cooperate fully with the formal investigation and the contract milker had been removed from allduties requiring unsupervised contact with stock pending the outcome of due process with regard to contractual obligations.

Animal rights group SAFE says it is pleased to see the charges laid but says that without proper regulatory enforcement, animal cruelty will continue to blight New Zealand’s reputation. 

“The ministry in charge of growing and promoting NZ’s primary industries has a clear conflict of interest with its animal protection responsibilities, and the animals are paying for it with their lives.”

More like this

Editorial: Agri's mojo is back

OPINION: Good times are coming back for the primary industries. From sentiment expressed at Fieldays to the latest rural confidence survey results, all indicate farmer confidence at a near-record high.

Featured

Horticulture exports hit $8.4B, surge toward $10B by 2029

A brilliant result and great news for growers and regional economies. That's how horticulture sector leaders are describing the news that sector exports for the year ended June 30 will reach $8.4 billion - an increase of 19% on last year and is forecast to hit close to $10 billion in 2029.

National

Machinery & Products

Farming smarter with technology

The National Fieldays is an annual fixture in the farming calendar: it draws in thousands of farmers, contractors, and industry…

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

110,000 visitors!

OPINION: It's official, Fieldays 2025 clocked 110,000 visitors over the four days.

Sticky situation

OPINION: The Federated Farmers rural advocacy hub at Fieldays has been touted as a great success.

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter