A major investigation has been launched after slaughterhouse workers were filmed beating cows with pipes before killing them.

The undercover footage also shows abattoir workers slamming a gate shut on the neck of another animal.

Another clip taken from a slaughterhouse run by PJ Hayman, in Ottery St Mary, Devon, reveals a cow being threatened and slipping on the floor as it tries to escape the workers.

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They also seemed to find the abuse funny with one worker baiting another in the video, saying: ‘Don’t hesitate. You’re hesitating.’


A colleague then laughs, and he adds: ‘Do you want some Christmas beef?’



A spokesman for PJ Hayman, which supplies butchers across Devon, told Metro.co.uk it denied any welfare wrongdoing and refused to comment further.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) launched an investigation after animal rights organisation Animal Aid released the footage.

Tor Bailey, farming and slaughter campaign manager at Animal Aid, said: ‘PJ Hayman & Sons is a small slaughterhouse, which some people may think is more humane, but we were deeply shocked and saddened by what we filmed there.

A worker at the PJ Hayman abattoir in Ottery St. Mary, Devon, hits the cow with a pipe (Picture: Animal Aid/ SWNS)

‘This included a cow being beaten on the way to her death, and the already horrific slaughter process being worsened by blatant incompetence.

‘Time and time again we have revealed shocking scenes that dispel the “humane slaughter” myth.

‘We would urge anyone who feels moved by the footage to consider going plant-based as this is the only way to be assured of animal welfare.’

A spokesman for the FSA said: ‘The Food Standards Agency takes animal welfare at abattoirs very seriously and a criminal investigation is underway.

‘Our veterinary staff reviewed the footage received from Animal Aid and appropriate action was taken within 24 hours.

One cow has a gate slammed shut on its neck (Picture: Animal Aid/ SWNS)

The worker is filmed leaning over the fence to grab the animal (Picture: Animal Aid/ SWNS)

‘The introduction of mandatory CCTV in slaughterhouses later this year is part of stronger measures to ensure proper safeguards are introduced to prevent incidents of this nature.’

According to Devon Live, a spokesman for PJ Hayman said one of the workers in the video had his slaughter licence suspended by the regulator.

He also reportedly said that in 140 hours of footage recorded only a few incidents were highlighted by the campaigners.

The spokesman added that a standard flexible plastic pipe was used to guide cattle.

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