Grant Family Farms owner Andrew Grant is under fire for the slaughter of 5,000 chickens that he raised because he could not afford to feed them any longer just before filing for bankruptcy.
But Grant told 7News that the slaughter of the chickens was the most humane thing he could do because otherwise they would have starved to death as the farm owner could no longer afford to feed them.
"This is the hardest thing I've ever had to do," Grant told The Denver Post about the bankruptcy, "It's just not right what happened here."
Grant killed the 5,000 chickens so that several other thousand on the farm could eat for another three weeks. He then sold off or adopted another 7,000 chickens to various parties.
"We dug a hole and we killed them and turned them into compost," Grant told The Fort Collins Coloradoan. Grant also said that the blame for the killing of the chickens belongs to that of Localization Partners, a financier that had loaned $1.5 million to the farm last year.
According to Grant, Localization Partners assumed control of the farm's finances and was withholding eggs for feed putting the chickens lives in jeopardy.
But Michael Brownlee, co-founder of Localization Partners, told The Denver Post that Grant is wrong to blame the financial company. The Associated Press reports that Brownlee also said that the chicken business was separate from the rest of the farm and that LP had no obligation to pay for feed.
On the Grant Family Farms Facebook page, the farm staff addressed the slaughtering of their chickens:
We truly hope that you all know that we are as heartbroken as you are about the euthanization of part of our beloved flock! This was not an easy decision to make and not one we would ever want to make again.
Please trust that we are doing all we can and that sometimes situations are more complicated than they appear. Thank you, as well, for anything you can do to help.
The farm also posted that the remaining chickens are up for adoption, anyone interested can come by the farm Friday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., or Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. to adopt. Grant Family Farm is located at 1020 West County Road 72, Wellington, Colorado.
According to The Coloradoan, the 2,000-acre farm closed in December when it filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
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