Following Animal Outlook’s undercover investigation into Jannat Farm—a Tyson-contracted facility in Virginia—the owner has pleaded guilty to two charges of animal cruelty. This comes after the farm manager’s guilty plea in August. Our investigation revealed horrifying abuses of 150,000 birds, including:
-Workers throwing, kicking, and violently killing chickens
-Birds left to suffer with severe injuries and deformities
-Food and water deprivation for up to 52 hours
-Filthy conditions with rampant rat activity and decaying corpses
It's rare to see charges against the owner and manager of a facility, so we're very pleased that the Virginia Office of the Attorney General saw this case through. Animal Outlook pushed for guilty pleas instead of "no contest" pleas to ensure that the owner accepted legal culpability for the cruelty at his facility.
Jareb Gleckel, Staff Attorney for Animal Outlook, commented on the significance of the case:
“The fact that both the owner and manager of this animal agriculture facility have pleaded guilty to the cruelty that occurred under their watch disproves the industry’s narrative that animal abuse on farms is merely due to ‘a few bad apples.’ Animal cruelty is a systemic issue, deeply rooted in the structure of these agricultural operations and the perception of animals as commodities rather than living, thinking, and feeling beings. Until we recognize the inherent value and sentience of animals and stop consuming them, abuse will persist, and animals will continue to suffer.”
