An undercover video of what appeared to be animal abuse sent Howard Hill into action.
An activist shot the video last year at a confinement barn near Kamrar owned by Iowa Select Farms of Iowa Falls, the largest producer of hogs in the state. It was the latest in a series of such videos of hog and hen operations, produced and distributed to the media for maximum shock effect.
Shaken by the publicity and loss of some business, Iowa Select was jarred into what Hill, its director of external operations, said became “a whole new corporate culture.”
“We hired four new animal welfare specialists and adapted externally designed training programs to make sure that our employees treat the hogs with respect,” said Hill, who holds a Ph.D. in veterinary science from Iowa State University. He said several Iowa Select employees have been fired in the past year for improperly handling hogs.
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