Six Animal Rising supporters were found guilty of charges including “conspiracy to commit criminal damage” and "public nuisance" at Worcester Crown Court, following a week of widespread protests against the dairy industry in 2022.
Six Animal Rising supporters were found guilty at Worcester Crown Court today (19/12/24) following a three-week trial after taking part in Animal Rising’s “Stop the Supply” Dairy Campaign in September 2022, in which Müller’s Droitwich site was blockaded by protestors [1].
Four of the group were found guilty of public nuisance and conspiracy to commit criminal damage. One defendant was found guilty of conspiracy to commit criminal damage and having an article with intent to destroy or damage property. The sixth was found guilty of having an article with intent to destroy or damage property, and public nuisance.
One defendant was also accused of common assault and was found not guilty of this charge.
The protest was part of a week of nationwide Animal Rising protests which saw dairy trucks immobilised and milk shortages on supermarket shelves [2] [3].
Sentencing is due to take place on 7th February 2025.
Sarah McCaffrey, 21, one of the defendants, said:
“Animal farming is a leading cause of deforestation, habitat loss, biodiversity loss, ocean dead zones, water pollution, emissions, and is responsible for over a billion animals being slaughtered every year within the UK. We protested at dairy distribution centres across the UK because of the direct link between dairy and the climate crisis.
“I was part of this campaign because we need systemic change; we need governments to implement systems and structures in order to protect our future.”
A 2023 study by Oxford University, backed up other previous studies, showed that a plant-based diet has the lowest impact on the environment in all areas analysed, including emissions, land-use, water-use and biodiversity loss [4].
Animal Rising is a social movement to create a new relationship with all beings and give us a chance for a safe ecological future. The group primarily calls for the transition to a secure and sustainable plant-based food system, alongside a mass rewilding programme.
ENDS
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Notes to the Editor:
[3] https://www.animalrising.org/post/update-arla-says-milk-shortages-in-supermarkets-are-inevitable