PETA Accuses Canada Goose Of Mistreating Geese After Supplier Video Emerges

High-end retailer Canada Goose came under fire by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) after one of its suppliers was allegedly caught in new video footage suffocating geese in cramped, wire cages. The geese featured in the video were allegedly forced to ride in the tight crates during a five-hour-plus trip to the slaughterhouse.

The footage reportedly originated from Manitoba supplier James Valley Colony Farms (JVC) Oct. 10 and from September to October at Schiltz Foods in South Dakota, the largest goose slaughterhouse in North America. It was provided to International Business Times by PETA after one of its representatives went undercover.

In the video, workers' faces are blurred as they grab the geese by their necks, sometimes two in each hand, as the birds appeared to squirm and flap their wings. Many of the geese seemingly moved away from the workers, which allegedly resulted in at least one bird being crushed to death. The geese can then be seen being put into wire cages ahead of their trip to Schiltz Foods.

The footage concluded with the workers seemingly shackling the animals and hanging them upside down, one by one, to slash their throats in front of other geese.

Canada Goose, reportedly valued at $2 billion, was accused by PETA of misleading the public regarding the source of its down. The company, however, denied the geese in the video were part of its supply. The Canadian retailer known for its pricey jackets claimed that all its materials are "ethically sourced" and that PETA was "misrepresenting the truth."

"The animals and the treatment of them shown in PETA's recent video are not a part of the Canada Goose supply chain, as confirmed by our supplier, Feather Industries," Canada Goose said in a statement issued to International Business Times. "We regularly audit our full supply chain to ensure global and our own standards are being met at all times."

"We hold all suppliers accountable and have firm protocols in place if any supplier in any part of our supply chain is found in breach of our strict requirements," the brand added. "Once again, this is a case of activists misrepresenting the truth for their own purposes."

Feather Industries also denied receiving the feathers from the animals featured in PETA's video footage.

"Feather Industries and, by extension, Canada Goose, did not receive any feathers from animals portrayed in the video, directly or indirectly," Alex Pryde, a manager at Feather Industries, told IBT. "It is our understanding that the farm in question have committed to reviewing their procedures, and we will follow up to ensure this is the case."

JVC did confirm to IBT that the video came from its farm about a month ago. The supplier claimed to be working towards making improvements to its loading process but alleged that PETA "misrepresented" them. A PETA representative "pretended" to be interested in joining the colony, but apparently "angled everything to their agenda," said JVC's general manager Edward Hofer. PETA denied that its observer expressed such desire.

"We are going to take responsibility for what happened," Hofer told IBT. "We are going to try to improve our loading practices and our animal welfare, the way we treat our animals."

Hofer told Winnipeg's CityNews in November that the geese, for the most part, live on free range. JVC attributed part of the geese's reaction depicted in the video to their temperament, saying: "they're very panicky, they're flighty [and] they pile up...Geese have the natural tendency to flee away from you."

Canada Goose pledges "humane treatment" of animals used in its products.

"We believe all animals are entitled to humane treatment in life and death, and are deeply committed to the responsible use and ethical sourcing of all animal materials in our products," the Canada Goose website read. "We do not condone any willful mistreatment and neglect of animals or acts that maliciously cause undue pain, injury or suffering."

PETA's alleged exposé video on Canada Goose's supplier led the animal advocacy group to condemn the retailer for alleged "false" advertisement regarding how its material is sourced.

"This is false advertising because there's nothing 'humane' about a process in which geese are trampled and suffocated, grabbed by the neck, and crammed into tiny cages for hours of terror and misery," Tracy Reiman, PETA's executive vice president, said in a statement issued to IBT. "PETA is calling on consumers to refuse to buy Canada Goose’s cruelly produced coats and anything else stuffed with tormented birds' down."

Canada Goose also faced scrutiny from PETA and its advocates for its use of coyotes in the fur trim that lines the hoods of its coats. The coyotes are allegedly caught in steel traps and shot or beat to death, according to PETA. These allegations resulted in global criticism against the retailer, including a string of protests at Canada Goose's standalone stores.

Security guards stood in front of Canada Goose's shop in New York Nov. 8 as an individual dressed in a bloody goose costume led PETA advocates in protest. Canada Goose protesters then surrounded a location in central London Nov. 11, which attracted a large police presence. More recently, demonstrators went back to the New York location Dec. 1 to protest the Canadian retailer's use of coyote fur.

Street artist Praxis said he would create an extensive wall mural in an effort to denounce Canada Goose for its alleged mistreatment of the animals used in its down coats. The mural, which would be featured as a part of the Wellington Court Mural Project in Astoria, Queens, would read: "Not Your Fur. #CanadaGooseKills."

PETA filed a complaint against Canada Goose Nov. 1 with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Canadian Competition Bureau of Canada (CC-BC). The complaint requested that the two government agencies investigate the fashion retailer for it alleged mistreatment of animals. PETA's request was supported by its 6.5 million members and supporters, which included more than 314,000 persons in Canada.

"On its website, Canada Goose has published several unfounded claims regarding the 'humane' conditions under which the geese whose feathers are used to manufacture its products are raised," Jared Goodman, PETA's director of animal law, wrote in the complaint.

The FTC and CC-BC confirmed to IBT that an investigation into Canada Goose's treatment of animals is underway. Both agencies declined to comment further.