NEOSHO, MO. ? A southwest Missouri egg producer that wants to add space for another 2.6 million birds in Newton County is under investigation after a man videotaped live chickens being dumped from a conveyer into a Dumpster.

Newton County Sheriff Ken Copeland said a detective was looking into allegations of animal cruelty based on evidence from the video recording, which he said provideed sufficient evidence to prompt the investigation into Moark.

“It’s definitely too quick to judge, but we need to do a thorough investigation to make sure the chickens are being disposed of in a correct way,” said Copeland, who viewed the video Monday.

Moark responded to the accusations by saying that a subcontractor was “in a bit of a hurry” and didn’t allow enough time for the chickens to die after they were gassed.

Dan Hudgens, Moark’s Midwest regional manager, said the subcontractor was hauling away aged birds from a house containing more than 1,000 chickens.

“They just weren’t exercising enough patience,” Hudgens said. “They’ve been shown the correct procedures, and we, as a company, continue to monitor them.”

He said it’s not unusual for a bird to be “passed up” for gassing, but in the case last week, proper procedures weren’t followed.

Rick Bussey, who said he videotaped live chickens being discarded into the Dumpster on Thursday and Friday, questioned Moark’s explanation.

“I’m not even sure what is legal, but every chicken coming off of this conveyer was live,” Bussey said. “They were jumping and flapping their wings.”

The accusations come at a time when Moark is awaiting approval by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to build 13 chicken houses in the county holding 200,000 chickens each. A decision is expected by the end of the summer.

The proposal is being opposed by Crowder Colleges board of directors and Rep. Kevin Wilson of Neosho. They cited the company’s pollution record and the expansion’s potential impact on the area’s water supply.

The Neosho City Council and Newton County Commission have declined to take a stand on the development.

Bussey said he hopes his video will open people’s eyes to the kind of activity going on at Moark.

“A lot of people may not care about the odor, but this here will change their minds (about Moark), he said. “This is animal cruelty.”