St Ivel a victim of 30ft cow thieves

Cow rustling – once the preserve of any Western movie worth its salt – is hitting cities across the country at an alarming rate, according to food manufacturer St Ivel.

The company has revealed that within a week of the launch of a poster campaign for its Gold margarine, a third of the 4ft high, 3D cows displayed above the posters have been rounded up by thieves.

A spokeswoman says: “About a third of these posters have experienced spates of “rustling” in the past few days. City sites including Birmingham, Leeds, Newcastle, Bristol, Edinburgh and Glasgow have all fallen victim.”

The spokeswoman believes the crimes are well organised and executed, as the sites are 30ft high.

Who would be mad enough about cows to come equipped with 30ft ladders in the dead of night? Or perhaps St Ivel is just desperate for a bit of PR.