A nearly 20-year-old video released by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals detailing the abuse of turkeys at one of the nation’s leading Thanksgiving bird suppliers has caused an uproar online.

The 2006 footage appears to show Butterball employees mistreating live turkeys at a plant in Ozark, Arkansas, and sparked numerous comments from outraged turkey lovers who took PETA at its word.

“Do you know what happened to your Butterball turkey before he was killed?” PETA captioned his Instagram video, which went live on November 22nd.

In the video, a silhouetted speaker in a disguised voice claims that factory employees sexually abused and beat the turkeys before the birds were slaughtered and sent to market. One clip appears to show a man sitting on a turkey as it fights. Others show people mistreating them. The speaker claims he “bragged” about the abuse.

The uproar led to both unfounded recall rumors and calls for a boycott. Butterball insisted that none of the measures were necessary and confirmed that there was no recall – underpinning the absence of any recall notices on government and public health websites.

“We are aware of a video from nearly 20 years ago that is being reshared on social media,” a spokesperson told the New York Daily News in an emailed statement. “This video is not current and was recorded before Butterball became a private company and before our involvement and certification with American Humane. The care and welfare of animals is central to us as a company and we are committed to caring for our herds ethically and responsibly.”

The company said it received American Humane certification 11 years ago.

“We are proud of this distinction, which no other turkey company can claim, and have a zero-tolerance policy for animal abuse,” the Butterball spokesperson said.

But PETA is determined to confront turkey shoppers at the grocery store — using its “life-size, hyper-realistic turkey truck” Hell on Wheels, complete with images of gobblers stuffed into crates, in hopes of “intercepting shoppers before they get one.” Make a purchase.” You cannot take it back,” PETA said in a media release.

The truck will broadcast the birds’ cries and broadcast a “subliminal message” every 10 seconds encouraging people to adopt a vegan diet.

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