Protect the Harvest is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded by oil executive Forrest Lucas which opposes "the radical animal rights movement” and particularly the Humane Society of the United States, which it calls "a wealthy and successful attack group". The advocacy organization has an allied political action committee, the Protect the Harvest PAC, which funds campaigns to assist or defeat candidates for political office.
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Mission and members
Protect the Harvest's stated goals include educating the public about animal agriculture, and preventing the passing of legislative or market-initiated bans on particular production practices. The organization's founder and president is millionaire Lucas Oil owner Forrest Lucas, who has invested over $600,000 in the organization. Its executive director, Brian Klippenstein, is also the treasurer of the associated PAC. Other members of the organization include Iowa State Representative Erik Helland and Missouri State Senator Mike Parsons.
Protect the Harvest is a supporter of "right-to-farm laws" as proposed or supported by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Lucas put money into the losing campaign to defeat Proposition B (designed to prevent cruelty to dogs in puppy mills) in Missouri in 2010. He also invested in the winning campaign to pass Measure 1 in Missouri (an amendment to state Constitution to protect "the right of Missouri citizens to engage in agricultural production and ranching practices") in 2014.
Protect the Harvest is considered a corporate front group by the nonprofit Center for Food Safety. HSUS vice president Joe Maxwell called Protect the Harvest "a front group in bed with industrialized agriculture”, and rejected its allegations about the HSUS's aims. Protect the Harvest claims that the HSUS opposes all ownership of animals; HSUS vice president Paul Shapiro replied, "That would certainly be news to the vast numbers of our staff who bring their dogs to work here."
Finances
Between October 2011 and December 2012, Protect the Harvest raised approximately $927,000. In 2012, according to FEC records, Lucas Oil contributed $200,000 to Protect the Harvest to fund advertisements against Christie Vilsack, who challenged and lost to incumbent Iowa congressman Steve King. Protect the Harvest also received funds from American Action Network, a group led by former senator Norm Coleman, and a group called Missouri Farmers Care. Lucas contributed over $200,000 to oppose the Massachusetts Conditions for Farm Animals Initiative, which passed with strong support in 2016.
The Dog Lover
Protect the Harvest collaborated with ESX Entertainment to produce the 2016 movie The Dog Lover. The film depicts an idealistic college student sent undercover by an animal welfare organization to investigate a puppy mill, and eventually becoming disillusioned with the welfare organization, which is presented as unethical. The film presents itself as "based on a true story", although there are major differences between its portrayal and the South Dakota court case which inspired it.
The film received an overall rating of "rotten" from review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, with six out of eight negative reviews. Michael Rechtshaffen, writing for the Los Angeles Times, called the film's execution "spottier than a kennel full of caged Dalmatians," and Glenn Kenny of Rogerebert.com labeled it "shamelessly manipulative", while Owen Gleiberman of Variety wrote that "it’s a prosaic piece of muckraking, but it grazes a nerve."