Dairy official says he hasn’t seen human trafficking lawsuit

The manager of an Idaho dairy named in a human trafficking lawsuit declined to comment on the allegations Thursday, saying they hadn’t yet been notified of the legal action.

Six Mexican veterinarians filed the lawsuit against Funk Dairy Inc. in Boise’s U.S. District Court earlier this week, contending they were recruited to work at the southern Idaho facility as animal scientists, but instead were forced to work as general laborers for about a year.

Curtis Giles, the manager of Funk Dairy and one of the named defendants, said the dairy had not yet been notified of a lawsuit and so he couldn’t comment. He said the dairy cares about its employees, and makes sure they are being taken care of in all aspects of their employment.

In the lawsuit, the workers claim they were brought to the dairy in Murtaugh, Idaho using visas granted to professionals from Mexico and Canada.