On 1 February 1995, English animal rights activist Jill Phipps was crushed to death under a lorry during a protest to stop the air export of live calves for veal near Coventry Airport.

In January 1995, a group of thirty farmers established an organization (ITF) to acquire alternative transportation through sea and air ports.

These quantitative restrictions were challenged in court and it was "concluded that the unlawful activity of protesters and its effects on police resources provided no justification for totally prohibiting a lawful trade.

[4] In 2006 this ban was lifted, but Coventry Airport's executive chairman pledged that he would refuse requests to fly live calves.

[citation needed] In 1986, together with her mother and sister, Phipps raided the Unilever laboratories in objection of their practice of vivisection, and "smashed computer equipment, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage".

On her 31st birthday she protested outside the home of the man who ran Phoenix Aviation, the firm that operated the exports from Coventry airport.

[9] The service was attended by large numbers of mourners, including the actress Brigette Bardot and politician and former cabinet minister Alan Clark,[10] and drew international attention.

"[7] Her friend and fellow activist John Curtin has reflected that “there were big headlines that Jill lay down in front of the lorries and gave her life as a martyr, but that didn’t happen.

[17] The Birmingham poet Benjamin Zephaniah wrote a poem about Phipps, which was read for the first time during a march to commemorate the 10th anniversary of her death.