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Dairy firm warns farmers against strangers after men caught on film jabbing animals with sharp objects and punching and kicking them
Jane DaltonMonday 24 November 2025 17:34 GMTComments
CloseWorkers were filmed slapping, punching and kicking cows, after their babies were taken away
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The RSPCA has condemned as “completely unacceptable” the way men at two dairy farms supplying milk for Cathedral City cheese violently attacked cows.
An animal-rights filmmaker secretly filmed workers jabbing animals with sharp objects, hitting them with metal brooms, punching, slapping and kicking them, and twisting their tails.
The company that produces Cathedral City cheese warned its dairy farmers to watch out for strangers on their property and not to talk to them after learning that the filming had taken place.
In some instances men were seen hitting cows with plastic pipes – and twice they were seen inserting rods into animals’ rectums to make them stand.
Activists claimed the cows were controlled with “force and fear”.
open image in galleryCows were hit and frightened at Polshea Farm, the footage shows (Joey Carbstrong)The government and county council say animal-welfare officials are investigating the farms in Cornwall, and one was suspended after secret recordings were revealed.
On seeing the footage, Dairy Crest Limited, trading as Saputo Dairy UK, one of the UK’s biggest dairy producers, suspended Polshea Farm in Bodmin as a supplier for two weeks.
A company spokesperson said: “We care deeply about the way the milk we source is produced and do not condone any act of animal cruelty. The footage shared is disturbing and offends the values of our customers, consumers, and employees alike.”
The Red Tractor farming assurance scheme said it also suspended Polshea Farm.
Saputo’s website promises zero tolerance of cruelty, and after seeing the footage anger-management training and CCTV were introduced.
open image in galleryMothers were said to show signs of anguish when their newborns were taken away (Joey Carbstrong)Filmmaker and animal-rights activist Joey Carbstrong said he carried out investigations in April this year at Polshea Farm, a mega-dairy, after he received footage from activists taken in 2022 showing workers slapping, punching, kicking and stabbing cows with sharp implements. One animal was punched in the face and beaten after becoming trapped in a milking carousel in “a frenzied assault”.
The cow was also chased and “terrified”, the video shows, while others were hit with iron bars.
Jenny L Mace, an associate lecturer in animal welfare at the University of Winchester, counted 64 cases in the footage that she claimed were illegal.
The footage from this year shows violence including cows apparently too ill or exhausted to stand being slapped and kicked to force them to their feet, and calves being dragged away by their legs, often at birth.
open image in galleryCameras caught workers at Polshea Farm jabbing animals with sharp objects (Joey Carbstrong)An injured cow was lifted by tractor fork and a sharp tool was dug into a cow’s back and side, the footage allegedly shows. Farm hands shouted angrily at animals to try to frighten them into moving.
Mr Carbstrong said he saw two dead animals left outside to decompose.
At Trevear Farm in Penzance in 2022, 40 cases of alleged illegal behaviour were recorded, including slapping, kicking and punching cows, sometimes with pipes, and plastic pipes also used in cows’ rectums.
Mr Carbstrong said: “One of our farm vets said Saputo had sent an email warning to their farms and suppliers telling them not to talk to strangers and to be more vigilant following the exposure. ‘Be more vigilant’ – that's a weird thing to say to farms who are sending you milk. Wouldn’t you say stop abusing cows?
“And this individual [the vet] said farmers should be fine talking to strangers if they're not doing anything illegal.”
open image in galleryThe two farms supplied Saputo, owner of the Cathedral City brand (Saputo / Cathedral City)An RSPCA spokesperson said: “The footage from these farms shows shocking behaviour towards animals; where staff are seen kicking, hitting, prodding and shoving cows, sometimes with gates, poles and vehicles, including those seemingly unable to stand.
“This will have caused significant distress and pain to the cows, and is completely unacceptable behaviour towards any animal.”
Both farms supply milk to Saputo Dairy UK, which produces Cathedral City cheese, and Clover and Country Life spreads. The Penzance Trevear Farm has no connection to Trevear farm in Wadebridge.
Mr Carbstrong said: “Whether a smaller local facility like Trevear Farm in Penzance, or a larger intensive dairy like Polshea, the reality is the same: terrified cows were beaten, tormented and abused.
open image in galleryCameras caught staff at Polshea Farm using a forklift tractor to move a large cow that activists said was injured (Joey Carbstrong)“Disturbingly, we documented workers on both farms violating cows by forcing objects into their rectums – one was injured or unable to stand.”
A Saputo spokesperson added: “All supplying farms must adhere to our animal welfare policy and farm standards. In addition to industry audits, we conduct our own regular audits and make sure to investigate any credible allegation of animal cruelty.”
The spokesperson said: “The farm owners in question have taken responsibility for their actions and have been cooperating fully.”
Saputo had resumed taking supplies from Polshea farm because it had addressed all the urgent issues, they said. “These actions include professional anger and stress-management support, animal-handling training for all staff, the designation of a full-time staff member dedicated to the safety and care of the animals and staff on site, the utilisation of appropriate animal moving devices and the installation of CCTV.”
They added that there would also be follow-up audits by experts.
Meanwhile, the company was investigating the 2022 footage from Trevear Farm in Penzance, they said.
open image in galleryFootage showed cows repeatedly being kicked at Polshea Farm, Mr Carbstrong says (Joey Carbstrong)A Red Tractor spokesperson said: “We take the welfare of animals on Red Tractor assured farms extremely seriously. We’re investigating the farms shown in this footage and have suspended Polshea Farm’s Red Tractor certification.”
The RSPCA does not have statutory powers to enter private property and passes 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.
An agency spokesperson said: “We take breaches of animal welfare legislation very seriously and will always take action where we find this. We are investigating these cases.”
Cornwall council told Mr Carbstrong that an animal-health inspector and an APHA vet visited Trevear Farm unannounced days after receiving the footage and found nothing illegal during their visit.
open image in galleryJoey Carbstrong says he found decomposing cows outdoors at Polshea Farm (Joey Carbstrong)A Cornwall council spokeswoman said: “On October 8, 2025, Cornwall Council received footage that was allegedly filmed at Trevear and Polshea Farms. Inspectors from our animal health team have visited both farms. Our enquiries remain ongoing.”
Both farms were asked to comment but did not respond.
Mr Carbstrong claimed the dairy industry in the UK leaves animals susceptible to abuse.
“From the milk in people’s tea to the cheese on their pizzas, the products of this system reach almost every household in the country,” he said.
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