Milo Runkle

Milo Runkle is an American activist and the founder of Mercy For Animals.

According to Mercy For Animal’s website, Milo’s journey to animal rights activist began when “his high school biology teacher, who was also a pig farmer, brought dead piglets to class for a dissection assignment. To the horror of many students, one piglet was still alive. A student who worked on the teacher’s farm grabbed the squealing piglet and slammed her headfirst against the floor in a failed attempt to kill her. The incident sent shockwaves through the community. A judge ruled that the student’s action was legal because it was ‘standard agricultural practice.'”²Mercy For Animals. Our Founder. Available: https://mercyforanimals.org/our-founder/ [Accessed 4 November 2021].

Disgusted by this action and the outcome, Runkle decided something had to be done. This wasn’t just a case of a city boy shocked by the realities of farming: Runkle was raised on a farm by fourth generation farmers so he more than anyone understood the methods involved.

Runkle’s early activism involved “open releases”, where, under the cover of darkness, he and other activists would liberate farmed animals from their imprisonment. The rescues would be documented to expose the horrible living conditions on the farms.

Wanting to do more for animals than he could on an individual level, Runkle started Mercy For Animals which investigates farms and campaigns for systemic change in the food insdustry.