CORK Co Operatives Marts has been fined €4,250 after pleading guilty to breaches of animal welfare regulations exposed in an RTE Investigates series.
BY OLIVIA KELLEHER
Cork Co Operative Marts, trading as Bandon Mart, has been in operations since 1956 and was without previous convictions until this incident.
The company admitted three offences under European Animal Welfare Regulations.
Judge Joanne Carroll deemed as a ‘completely unacceptable’ incident at Bandon Mart in which a customer mistreated a calf.
Footage showed they took a young calf across the road, dragging and lifting its head and tail before placing it in to a calf box.
The offences occurred on February 13th, 2023 and April 17th, 2023.
The company pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the welfare of a calf under European legislation which prohibits the lifting of an animal or the dragging of it by its head, ears, horn, legs or tail.
They also pleaded guilty to breaches of legislation relating to the loading and unloading facilities.
The livestock auctioneers had failed to ensure that its facility in Bandon was adequately designed, maintained and operated to avoid injury and suffering to bull calves.
The company also pleaded guilty to failing to comply with rules relating to the use of a stick when animals are being loaded or unloaded from a vehicle.
It was stressed in court that the three charges did not involve any Cork Marts employees mistreating calves.
The court heard that the Department of Agriculture launched an investigation into several breaches of animal welfare regulations at marts throughout the country on foot of undercover footage and still photographs captured by RTE.
Barrister Paula McCarthy, for the Department of Agriculture, told the court that video footage and stills by RTE journalists formed part of the probe.
All three offences related to Bandon Mart.
Imogen McGuinness, senior investigator with the Department of Agriculture, said video footage and photography captured by RTE on February 13th, 2023 showed a customer of Bandon Mart taking a calf across the road in to a car park ‘dragging the calf and lifting its tail at an angle’.
The man had failed to reverse his trailer in to position in the intake area and instead dragged the calf across the road.
Video footage captured by RTE on April 17th, 2023 also showed an employee of a transport company striking calves with an ash type w stick.
The man was not directly employed by Cork Marts but they accepted that they were responsible for ensuring that he treated the animals properly .
Ms McGuinness said that following the airing of the RTE programme they met with management at Cork Marts by agreement. The company fully co-operated, and put additional training in place. The company also wrote to their customers in the aftermath of the incident giving a commitment to maintain the highest standards of animal welfare.
The Department of Agriculture is satisfied that Bandon Mart is being run properly following the breaches which occurred on site in Bandon, the court heard.
The mart is now in full compliance with all EU regulations relating to animal welfare.
Veterinary staff at the Department of Agriculture have been monitoring the mart.
No further incidents have occurred.
Donnchadh McCarthy, representing Cork Marts, said that management at the company readily agreed that the dragging of the calf by the customer of the mart was ‘deplorable’.
‘They are in business since 1956 and have never been subject to a prosecution before,’ he said.
‘They are embarrassed to find themselves here. They took the matter very seriously. Staff were disciplined and new training was organised at a high cost.’
The mart attempted to identify the customer in question but found themselves unable to do so.
Taking the early guilty plea into account and the remedial actions taken since, Judge Carroll fined the company €4250; €2,000 for its failure to prevent the dragging of an animal, €750 for deficiencies in its loading and unloading facility and €1,500 for the charge relating to the striking of the calf.
The company agreed to pay the legal costs of the Department of Agriculture which amounted to €3,500.
