We want to thank you for your effort in taking care of the animals that support your family and thousands of other families. You and your care and concern for the animals are very important parts of the dairy industry. Your work is very important, and many people are very thankful for what you do to help produce one of the most complete and healthy foods – milk.
You, who work hard day by day to give your family a better life, have the respect and the admiration of many. Thank you for feeding your family, our families and for taking care of the animals which are the basis of your livelihood.
Thank you so much!
Regrettably, the industry you represent, the same industry that helps support your family, has been attacked this past summer by animal rights activists. This has caused the dairy industry to be threatened by such organizations seeking to destroy the name of your work, the work of your colleagues and the work of your employers, that work you do with so much pride.
Today, we need your valuable help. We want you to help us defend what you and your employer have built through a lot of effort and sacrifice.
Animal rights organizations, represented by radical activists, are working to grant animals the same legal rights as human beings and eliminate food consumption and the use of all other products derived from animals, such as milk and meat.
What are animal rights?
Animal rights are the belief that animals are equal to humans and that they should be free, not to be used as food, entertainment, research or any other purpose.
This way of thinking is an attack on farmers and our families.
Animal rights are very different from animal welfare or animal care, which is related to the welfare state of the animals and the care they receive from farmers and people like you … a proud employee who cares for the cows on your farm.
Animal rights activists use a variety of tactics to put dairy farmers, their families and your family out of business and encourage consumers to stop eating meat, chicken, milk and eggs. Some of the tactics these individuals use include disguising as undercover employees, surveying dairies with cameras and even breaking in, stealing animals and protesting in public places or on your dairies.
Remember that organizations such as the Animal Agriculture Alliance monitors animal rights activists and works to help protect dairy farms.
What is an ‘undercover’ employee?
Several animal rights organizations, such as PETA, Mercy for Animals and Animal Recovery Mission, hire people to work as undercover investigators. Their job is to be hired by a dairy to work with the cattle and record videos of anything that would look bad to the public. Many times, they encourage their co-workers to abuse the animals to get the images they want.
Once they have obtained these images, they turn in the images to the animal rights organization, which releases parts of the video to the media or on social media, changing the true story of the work you do with great pride and with a lot of respect.
The purpose of these videos is to encourage the public to stop eating meat, milk and other animal products. If you ever see a co-worker mistreating your animals or not following the dairy’s rules regarding respect for animals, inform your employer immediately. If you ever see a co-worker recording videos with a camera or a cellphone in a suspicious way or trying to hide a camera, let your employer know or talk to the manager immediately.
‘Surveillance’ of dairies
by activists
Animal rights organizations encourage their followers to get videos and images of dairies by taking photos from public roads or nearby land, using drones or following trucks carrying animals. The purpose of this is to share these images on social media or use them to start investigating the best way to get into your dairy without permission.
If you see suspicious people taking pictures of barns, animals or trucks, please inform your manager or the dairy owner.
Visitors
The dairies where you work often have visitors who are welcome – such as nutritionists, salespeople, veterinarians, inspectors, groups of tourists and others.
Unfortunately, animal rights activists can try to visit a dairy to steal animals, record videos, stream live videos on social media or to protest. If you encounter an unaccompanied visitor on the dairy, take him or her to the office or the entrance, ask them what their name is and ask them to explain the reason for their visit. Ask him or her to leave if he or she does not have an appointment or a legitimate reason to visit the dairy. If the visitor doesn’t want to leave, stay calm and call your manager immediately.
Prevention measures
- Talk to your employer about the specific procedures your dairy has to handle visitors.
- Read, understand, commit and sign the code of ethics document provided by your employer from the FARM program.
- Don’t post videos on your social media of your dairy about circumstances that may confuse a person who has no understanding of what you do in your work.
- Recommend your employer hire friends or family members who you know. This will avoid hiring people who have bad intentions.
- Do not accept money from people to harm your animals.
- Have an accessible and visible list of important telephone numbers in your dairy.
- Do not engage in conversations with people who have bad intentions with the animals on your dairy.
- Talk to your employer about photography and filming regulations on your dairy.
- Ask to receive proper training on how to move and manage cattle.
- Take care of and protect the animals that support your family.
- Hitting animals is not a brave act. If you feel tired or angry, know how to recognize those symptoms and take breaks or ask for help before making bad choices.
Thank you so much for your help. 
—Submitted by Jorge Delgado and the Agriculture Animal Alliance
Jorge Delgado is an Alltech employee and created and operates the company’s T2R program, a training, talent development and retention program for dairy workers. The Animal Agriculture Alliance is an industry-united, nonprofit organization that helps bridge the communication gap between farm and fork. Learn more about them at Animal Agalliance.
