Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
An independent audit commissioned by the corporate owners of a Spencer hatchery has concluded that some of the practices depicted by an undercover video are not standard operating procedure and are in violation of the company’s animal welfare policy.
A statement attributed to a communications firm that specializes in “reputation management” appeared on the Hy-Line Web site Tuesday, acknowledging the audit and relaying some of its findings.
This auditor stated: “In conclusion I am impressed with the commitment to animal care by Hy-Line and its employees here in Iowa. The equipment, practices and handling of chicks at the Hy-Line hatchery in Spencer, Iowa are consistent with customary industry husbandry practices and exceed animal welfare standards in a number of areas.”
However, these independent audits confirm that some of the practices at our Spencer, Iowa facility depicted in the undercover video did not reflect the standard operating procedures of our company and are in direct violation of our animal welfare policy. One scene in the video depicted a bypass of the instantaneous euthanasia process and was a direct and clear violation of both the authorized animal handling procedures and our welfare policies.
The statement from Hy-Line paints a legitimate picture of those responsible for the audit, describing those who investigated as “independent, third-party experts” and as including “a noted university professor with extensive research on animal welfare practices associated with poultry.” The process itself was described as “comprehensive.” The statement does not, however, provide the name of those who conducted the audit, nor does it provide the full text of the findings.
One recommendation — for the equipment within the hatchery to be locked-down to prevent employee alterations — was implemented immediately, according to the statement.
Since the undercover video by Mercy For Animals, a vegan advocacy and animal rights organization, was made public, many have expressed shock that male chicks, considered non-profitable to the egg industry, are killed shortly after hatching. The practice, however, is not news within the agricultural industry where “instantaneous euthanasia” is carried out daily. Rural experts contend that most Americans are too far removed from family farming, much less the agricultural industry, to know and/or understand why certain practices which appear cruel are continued.
In addition to the investigation initiated by Hy-Line, the United Egg Producers have also said they would investigate the allegations of animal cruelty depicted in the video.
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