What Did The Butterball Turkey Investigation Reveal?
According to one investigator, a Butterball employee stomped on a bird’s head until her skull exploded, another swung a turkey against a metal handrail so hard that her backbone popped out, and one inserted his finger into a turkey’s vagina.
PETA’s Plainville Farms Investigation Revealed More Turkey Torment
In 2021, a PETA investigator worked for Plainville Farms, a New Oxford, Pennsylvania-based company that claims to produce “humane” turkey in a “stress-free environment.”
PETA’s investigator saw workers attack birds to instill fear, to vent their frustration, or to relieve their boredom. One worker picked up a turkey with a neck injury and put her between his legs. Holding her by her injured neck, he mimicked masturbation, then dropped her on the floor, kicked her, and left her to die. A few nights later, the same worker put another hen between his legs and thrust his pelvis back and forth.
Former workers were charged with more than 140 counts of cruelty to animals, including six felonies, following the investigation. The case involves the most charges and defendants in any case of cruelty to factory-farmed animals in U.S. history, and 10 men have been convicted so far.
Be Thankful: There Are Lots of Vegan Options to Pair with Stuffing, Not Suffering
Turkeys used for food suffer just by being bred: They are kept in dark, crowded sheds, are stressed, and are weak because they were selectively bred to gain too much weight too quickly. No matter if the birds are sold by Butterball, Plainville Farms, or elsewhere, if you see their bodies for sale in a grocery store, know that they suffered.
The best way to help turkeys, the environment, and your health is to go vegan—and thankfully, there are loads of Turkey-free Thanksgiving meals to try.
