Source: Reported by Nancy Amons – email – of WSMV.com, Nashville
“They don’t do any DNA testing to see if the products coming out of there are actually beef…”
NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) – With all the recent news about horse meat found oversees in everything from frozen products to IKEA meatballs and Taco Bell, some may wonder who is testing the meat in your freezer.
Channel 4 News contacted the corporate offices of the local grocery store chains, and while one said they rely on federal tests, the feds aren’t testing for horse meat.
“They don’t do any DNA testing to see if the products coming out of there are actually beef,” said Jo-Claire Corcoran, with the Equine Welfare Alliance. “With the risk that there is, our government hasn’t started testing anything yet.”
Corcoran, the head of an anti-horse slaughter group, said the government ought be using DNA tests to see if horse meat is in the American food supply, especially because there is evidence that horse meat is being shipped through U.S. ports.
“We think it’s entirely possible at this point, because we are importing beef from other countries,” Corcoran said.
For example, the U.S. imports beef from Canada, where the same plants also process cows and horses.
Right now, horses can’t be slaughtered or their meat sold in the U.S.
In the past year, the Channel 4 I-Team has shown a series of stories about a Lebanon, TN, company hauling horses to slaughter plants along the Mexico border.
The federal government says since horses aren’t slaughtered in America, it’s very unlikely horse meat makes its way to American dinner plates.
However, thousands of records we found are raising questions about the meat coming into U.S. ports, including cases where horse meat was imported into ports in New Jersey, Texas and California over an eight-month period.
The USDA told Channel 4 they understand the horse meat is simply transferred in those ports and not imported into the United States. However, they admit the U.S. imports meat from Mexico and Canada, where horse slaughter for meat is legal.
While horse meat is consumed in many countries around the world, opponents in America contend some horses are treated with drugs that should not be eaten by humans – especially race horses.
And with all the horse meat coming through U.S. ports, some wonder if companies can say for sure it is not unexpectedly ending up on someone’s dinner table.
“We don’t know where it went,” Corcoran said…(CONTINUED)
Click (HERE) to read the story in it’s entirety at WSMV and to Comment
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Categories: Horse News, Horse Slaughter
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
In all probability with all research that has beem taking place over the past two and half months, it is probable that horse meat is already in the U S food chain. This is what happens when the greed of humans gets far greater than their need for Gods words, laws, and teaching. They start thinking they are above everything, including God! We shall reap what we sow….man destroying man…:(
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I’m betting that dna testing will find horse meat in products sold in the US within the next 30 days. I’m not convinced that proper inspections are being done before hitting our grocery store freezers. I watched the hearing on C-Span from the UK and it’s investigation into the contamination and even though the original processor could provide proof what left his plant was in fact 100% beef…some how the product got adulterated prior to getting to the public. I’m certain the same scenario can and probably has happened here.
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I’m glad I don’t eat meat . To eat a horse would be like eating one of my family.
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You are exactly right Barbara, It would infuriate me to find out that I have ingested a Horse, to me it is a Extreme Criminal Act and if it has happened here I will be Horrified and I would want heads to roll, the Idea of sneaking an putting horsemeat in food products any where is CRIMINAL and Should b e dealt with Immediately !!!! I want arrests to be made …………………….. GREED is at the base of this action !!!!!!The idea of hurting and maiming a horse in anyway is Undeniably a horror that should also be dealt with !!!!!!!!! These horses are treasures and posc ess such qualities that every human should have !!!!!!!! Natures perfect Balance the HORSE !~!!!!!!!!!
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wow, I am always surprised when the american people believe that every animal is inspected and tested at the slaughter house and down the line to your table..Its Not,even in beef- the USDA vet sits in his office with a window out to the chutes is only required to test every so often randomly..he goes out to lunch and goes home at 4..knowing full well that activity can be taking place after hours..Ilived wth one of these vets so know first hand the problems he dealt with.Canadian cows came acrss the border into the US carring Mad Cow and resulted in the closure of exports for several years..They were able to track these cows back to the source because food source animals can be tracked thru records…horsemeat comes from pets and there is no such chain to follow.
several times he delivered calves out of cows who had been slaugtered as they were ready to give birth, bring them home and we would bottle feed them and try to help them survive..this is an ugly depressing busines for everyone involved..many mares will be killed and when they open her up the baby will be alive…what will they do..throw it aside
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It is obvious that a huge percentage of American consumers vote “no confidence” for the meat industry as a whole since the horsemeat scandal hit. They are starting to question and become concerned about horsemeat and other unsavory fillers, like “red slime,” being added to meat products without their knowledge. The beef industry is hurting their brand and many people have stopped buying beef, especially ground beef.
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a step below the walmart ‘beef’ are the corner store lunch items and the walgreens ‘nice’ brand from their 1 freezer case. Workers microwave and eat on the spot. Cheap and those never taste like beef, they have a liverlike texture of horse.
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If ground beef has a country of origin label (COO/COOL) that reads “Canada, Mexico” (my personal favorite is CAN/MEX/USA….like 2 pounds of ground beef can come from 3 different steers/cows from 3 different countries)…the USDA CANNOT guarantee that is free of ANYTHING dangerous or multiple species.
I’d like to see someone do some testing on rolled/bulk ground beef at Wal-Mart, ALDI products and prepared beef patties. I’ve also noticed that many products say “distributed by”….not where all the pieces parts to make that product came from.
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state legislatures have refused to pass bills labeling “country of origin” some specialty food chains whose customers are very aware and demand it..do insist on labeling…truth is, Argentina is the largest exporter of Beef..we get alot of it here– is also the worlds largest exporter of horsemeat
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too disgusting to think about…already warned friends and family about dangers of ground beef and how the new fiscal cliff cuts will affect usda inspectors, who were too few to begin with….yes, another reason to go vegan…i only drink soy milk now and faux cream cheese and the thought of eating any meat makes me queasy. those poor animals! we must get the word out to the mainstream, as most people assume falsely that animals are protected from cruelty and that the food they eat is “safe.”
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http://www1.american.edu/ted/argbeef.htm
this is very interesting..until 1997, beef was banned for import in the US because of a hoof and mouth outbreak…argentina slaughters 150,000 horses a year for export..they donot consume horses..makes me wonder if they were raising horses in those banned beef years to compensate for their lack of beef exports…while beef was banned from US, Argentina was selling soups and pet food to the US..argentina has the vast pampas to graze animals which makes it pretty cheap..anyway it is a interesting link to read..the US now imports fresh beef and “processed beef products” from there
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Another great reason I don’t eat meat! Trying real hard to get my family to stop, or at least cut down. My husband only will eat chicken, but our teen daughter eats almost anything! You truly never know what you’re eating, &, I for one, do not wish to eat my pets, companions & friends, & “family members”!!!! At least my daughter has the good sense to avoid places like McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, or several other fast food places, now, perhaps, we need to add Taco Bell to our “blacklist”, well, unless you order their taco salad with NO meat!
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Not on MY PLATE!!! I only eat chicken, in a restaurant on occasion… And will stop that soon!
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You are what you eat.
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Reblogged this on Serenity's Musings.
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Disgusting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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