In the wake of a 2019 animal cruelty scandal involving Fairlife, a drink made from cow's milk, a group of outraged Americans staged a protest along the dairy aisle of a supermarket. Mothers and their children reenacted the separation of mother cows from their baby calves, which is standard in the dairy industry, otherwise the baby calves would drink the milk nature intended for them. These consumers were upset after watching undercover video of horrific animal abuse taken at a Fairlife dairy supplier in Indiana, video released by the animal welfare group ARM, Animal Recovery Mission. According to the Chicago Tribute, the video "depicts workers throwing, dragging, kicking and hitting newborn calves." Click here to see the undercover video for yourself: https://animalrecoverymission.org/operations/factory-farm-division/operation-fair-oaks-farms-dairy-adventure/undercover-footage/

The videos made headlines and resulted in lawsuits. In January 2020, Coca-Cola bought out its partners to take full ownership of Fairlife. In 2022, Fairlife owner Coca-Cola and other parties agreed to pay $21 million to settle lawsuits for falsely advertising that their Fairlife ultra-filtered milk came from humanely treated cows. In a statement to the industry publication Food Dive, Fairlife proclaimed that, "animal welfare is and will always be a top priority.” The brand added that it has “significantly strengthened our animal care programs and processes since 2019″ through video camera monitoring, a third-party advisory board and more unannounced audits at supplying farms.

On its website, Fairlife now makes big claims about its high animal welfare standards saying, "Caring for animals is a top priority at Fairlife, and it all begins with strong relationships with supplying farms. Our robust animal welfare program is led by a full-time, on-staff veterinarian and combines industry leading standards with regular audits, strong oversight and the expertise of a third-party Animal Advisory Council consisting of leading experts in the dairy industry."

NEW FAIRLIFE COW/CALF CRUELTY SCANDAL IN 2025
Astoundingly, despite the above statements, a new animal cruelty scandal has erupted in 2025 involving different suppliers to Fairlife, these in Arizona. A 6-month investigation by ARM found “egregious and frequent” animal cruelty with animals being hit, dragged, whipped, shot, shoved, force-fed and chained at two Arizona farms.
Click here to see the ARM undercover investigation for yourself:
https://animalrecoverymission.org/operations/factory-farm-division/operation-fairlife-arizona/
In response, Coca-Cola’s Fairlife milk brand supplier announced that it has cut ties with the two Arizona farms, with Fairlife declaring, it has “zero tolerance for animal abuse,” Here is a link to Fairlife's official statements about its treatment of animals.
https://fairlife.com/our-mission/fairlife-cow-care-and-animal-welfare-standards/ ARM says animal abuse is industry wide and inherent in dairy production. We invite Fairlife and its parent company Coca Cola on at any time to respond further.
Related articles:
https://www.fooddive.com/news/coca-colas-fairlife-cuts-ties-with-2-arizona-farms-tied-to-animal-cruelty/741227/
https://digitaledition.chicagotribune.com/tribune/article_popover.aspx?guid=f357d376-6d4a-42d8-ad3f-59fd75ca1ae5
https://www.fooddive.com/news/coca-colas-fairlife-cuts-ties-with-2-arizona-farms-tied-to-animal-cruelty/741227/
https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2025/02/26/nonprofit-alleges-arizona-dairy-cows-were-whipped-stabbed-shot/80553007007/