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The RSPCA has described the treatment of men at two dairies as “completely unacceptable”. fields The cheesemongers who supplied milk for the Cathedral City violently attacked the cows.
An animal-rights filmmaker secretly filmed workers hitting the animals with sharp objects, beating them with metal brooms, punching, slapping, and twisting their tails.
The company making Cathedral City Cheese has warned about this dairy Farmers should be wary of strangers on their property and should not talk to them after learning that filming has taken place.
In some cases men were seen hitting the cows with plastic pipes – and twice they were seen inserting rods into the rectums of the animals to immobilize them.
Activists claimed that the cows were controlled by “force and fear”.
The government and county council say animal-welfare officers are investigating farms in Cornwall, and one was suspended after secret recordings emerged.
Upon viewing the footage, Dairy Crest Ltd trading as Saputo Dairy UK, one of the UK’s largest dairy producers, suspended Polesia Farm in Bodmin as a supplier for two weeks.
A spokesperson for the company said: “We care deeply about the way we produce milk and do not condone any actions animal crueltyThe footage shared is disturbing and offends the values of our customers, consumers and employees,
Red Tractor Farming Assurance Scheme said it had also suspended Polcia Farms.
Saputo’s website promises zero tolerance for cruelty, and after viewing the footage anger-management training and CCTV were introduced.
Filmmaker and animal-rights activist Joey Carbstrong They said they investigated a mega-dairy Polesia farm in April this year, after obtaining footage of workers, taken in 2022, which showed workers slapping, punching, kicking and hitting cows with sharp instruments. An animal was punched in the face and beaten after getting trapped in a milking carousel in a “frenzy attack”.
The video showed that the cow was also chased and “intimidated”, while others were hit with iron bars.
Jenny L. Mace, Associate Lecturer animal welfare At the University of Winchester, the footage counted 64 cases which they claimed were illegal.
This year’s footage shows The violence involves cows apparently so sick or tired that they are slapped and kicked to get them to their feet, and often calves are pulled by their feet at birth.
The footage reportedly shows that an injured cow was lifted with the fork of a tractor and a sharp instrument was used to pierce the cow’s back and side. The farm workers were shouting angrily at the animals to scare them and prevent them from moving.
Mr Carbstrong said he saw two dead animals left outside to rot.
At Trevire Farm in Penzance in 2022, 40 cases of alleged illegal behavior were recorded, including slapping, kicking and punching cows, sometimes hitting them with pipes and even using plastic pipes inserted into the cows’ rectums.
Mr Carbstrong said: “One of our farm vets said Saputo had sent an email warning to its farms and suppliers telling them not to talk to strangers and to be more cautious after exposure. ‘Be more cautious’ – that’s a strange thing to say to farms that are sending you milk. Wouldn’t you say stop abusing cows?
“And this person [the vet] He said that if farmers are not doing anything illegal then they should not have any problem in talking to strangers.
An RSPCA spokesperson said: “Footage from these farms shows shocking treatment of animals; where staff are seen kicking, hitting, prodding and pushing cows, sometimes with gates, poles and vehicles, with cows seemingly unable to stand up.
“This would have caused considerable distress and suffering to the cows, and is completely unacceptable behavior towards any animal.”
Both farms supply milk to Saputo Dairy UK, which produces Cathedral City cheese and Clover and Country Life spreads. Penzance Trevier Farm is no relation to Trevier Farm in Wadebridge.
Mr Carbstrong said: “Whether a small local facility like Trevier Farm in Penzance, or a large intensive dairy like Polsea, the reality is the same: frightened cows being beaten, tormented and abused.
“Disturbingly, we found that workers on both farms were violating cows by forcefully inserting objects into their rectums – one was injured or left unable to stand.”
A spokesperson for Saputo said: “All supplying farms must comply with our animal welfare policy and farm standards. In addition to industry audits, we carry out our own regular audits and ensure that any credible allegations of animal cruelty are investigated.”
The spokesman said: “The farm owners involved have taken responsibility for their actions and are cooperating fully.”
He said Saputo has resumed taking supplies from Polcia Farms as it has resolved all the pressing issues. “These actions include professional anger and stress-management support, animal-handling training for all staff, designation of a full-time staff member dedicated to the safety and care of animals and staff on site, use of appropriate animal transport equipment and installation of CCTV.”
He said a follow-up audit would also be conducted by experts.
Meanwhile, the company was examining 2022 footage from Trevier Farm in Penzance, he said.
A Red Tractor spokesperson said: “We take the welfare of animals on Red Tractor Assured farms extremely seriously. We are investigating the farms shown in this footage and have suspended Poleshia Farm’s Red Tractor certification.”
The RSPCA does not have statutory powers to enter private property and delegates farm-animal cruelty investigations to the government’s Animal and Plant Health Agency. The charity urged people to report complaints about commercially farmed animals to the agency.
A spokesperson for the agency said: “We take breaches of animal welfare law very seriously and will always take action where we find them. We are investigating these matters.”
Cornwall Council told Mr Carbstrong that an animal-health inspector and an APHA vet visited Trevire Farm unannounced a few days after the footage was obtained and found nothing illegal during their visit.
A spokesperson for Cornwall Council said: “On October 8, 2025, Cornwall Council received footage, which was allegedly filmed at Trevire and Polesia Farms. Inspectors from our animal health team have visited both farms. Our inquiries are ongoing.”
Both farms were asked to comment but did not respond.
Mr Carbstrong claimed the dairy industry in Britain leaves animals vulnerable to abuse.
“From milk in people’s tea to cheese in their pizza, the products of this system reach almost every household in the country,” he said.