Terrified Pig Beaten at Coldwater Slaughterhouse; PETA Seeks Criminal Probe
For Immediate Release:
May 13, 2026
Contact:
Nicole Perreira 202-483-7382
A just-released U.S. Department of Agriculture report obtained by PETA reveals that a worker at Clemens Food Group’s slaughterhouse outside Coldwater violently beat at least one frightened pig with a paddle on the head. In response, PETA today sent an urgent letter to Branch County Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Nora J. Geiger, urging her to investigate and file appropriate criminal charges against the suspect.
According to the report, on October 15, a federal inspector witnessed the worker grow increasingly violent while unloading pigs from a trailer at the slaughterhouse, becoming “more aggressive and forceful” in his “excessive” use of a paddle to move the animals, sending some of the pigs scrambling to escape. When one pig appeared reluctant to move, the worker struck the animal’s head with the paddle, causing the pig to recoil.
“This scared pig was violently beaten simply for hesitating at being marched to their death inside a slaughterhouse,” says PETA Vice President of Legal Advocacy Daniel Paden. “PETA is calling for a criminal investigation on behalf of this animal and urges everyone to help prevent animals from suffering in slaughterhouses by please going vegan.”
PETA is pursuing charges under state law because federal officials haven’t prosecuted any inspected slaughterhouses for acts of abuse since at least 2007.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—points out that when it comes to the ability to feel pain, hunger, and thirst, a pig is a dog is a boy. PETA offers free vegan starter kits for anyone thinking of making the switch. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
PETA’s letter to Geiger follows.
May 13, 2026
Nora J. Geiger
Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney
Branch County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
Dear Ms. Geiger:
I’m writing to request that your office (and a law-enforcement agency, as necessary) file applicable criminal charges against the Clemens Food Group LLC employee responsible for beating at least one pig last October at 572 Newton Rd., outside Coldwater.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) documented the incident in a report that the agency recently made available to the public. (See attachment.) According to the report, on October 15, 2025, an FSIS inspector heard the suspect “voice[] frustration” with pigs who ran farther into—rather than off—a trailer he was unloading at the slaughterhouse.
The Clemens Food Group worker then became “more aggressive and forceful” in his “excessive” use of a paddle to move these pigs. When one of the pigs was “reluctant to move,” the suspect “forcefully smacked” him or her with the paddle on the head.
Please note that FSIS’ simple narrative of this incident carries no criminal or civil penalties and does not preempt criminal liability under state law for acts of cruelty to animals.
The conduct described above appears to violate MCL § 750.50b. It hardly represents the “customary animal husbandry or farming practice involving livestock” otherwise exempt from prosecution. Michigan law affords victims like this their only chance at a small measure of legal recognition. We urge your office to seek it.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Daniel Paden
Vice President of Legal Advocacy
cc: Sheriff Fred Blankenship, Branch County Sheriff’s Office
