by Frank Buchman of the Kansas Rural Messenger “Americans don’t eat horse meat…” “The ‘bleeding hearts’ got reprieve again.” It sounds terribly rude, and crude, but that’s exactly the way one lifelong horse breeder, champion-horse exhibitor, internationally-recognized horse merchandizer, and true horse lover evaluated announcement that a horse […]
JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. — I read the recent cover story about the proposed horse slaughter plants in the U.S. (Agweek, Aug. 27) To say the plants are having problems getting opened is an understatement.
Chicago (EWA) – Following a ban funding for USDA inspections, and state legislation in Texas and Illinois, the last three horse slaughter plants in the US were closed in 2007. The result was that the horses were shipped to Canada and Mexico for slaughter. Last year the prohibition on funding was lifted, but now the very market for the meat from US horses is in question.
Horses are being singled out because they are not food animals in the US. Calling horses livestock does not make them food animals. Food animals are determined by how they are raised and regulated. Accordingly, US horses are non-food animals. They do not meet food safety laws by any stretch of the imagination. US horses are hauled out of the country with or without plants on US soil. According to USDA statistics, 775,474 horses were exported from 1989-2006 when all three foreign owned plants were operating on US soil.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the release of its final rule requiring uniform mandatory minimum penalties for violations of the federal Horse Protection Act. USDA-certified horse industry organizations operate alongside the USDA to enforce the Horse Protection Act by conducting inspections at Tennessee Walking Horse competitions. The final rule also clarifies that the agency can decertify a horse industry organization for any failure to comply with the regulations.
I, Vicky Johnson, have been desperately trying to find my two Mares, Suzy and Echo, that were taken from me on April 15th, 2012 by two people that promised me they would provide them with a good home.
WASHINGTON (April 9, 2012)—Front Range Equine Rescue and The Humane Society of the United States filed a legal petition with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to prevent former companion, working, competition and wild horses from being used as human food. The petition alleges that the drugs given to these horses throughout their lives are banned for animals used for food under federal law and/or are potentially dangerous to humans. Using these horses for human consumption creates an unacceptable and illegal public health threat under the Federal Meat Inspection Act. The groups sent a similar petition to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last month.
Issues and initiatives covered at the 2012 American Equine Summit this past weekend at a horse welfare education center in Chatham, NY, ranged from developing a tactical agenda to persuading Congress to pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, to Paula Bacon’s recounting of her successful effort to shut down the Dallas Crown horse slaughterhouse when she was mayor of Kaufman, Texas. Over 100 horse advocates convened, coming from as far as California and Texas, to as close as the next hamlet over.
A few years ago, when I was still serving in the Senate, I was asked to support legislation that would ban the practice of slaughtering horses for human consumption. My initial reaction was cool to the notion that the federal government should be mandating or telling owners of these horses what they can or cannot do with their animals. However, my initial instincts on such a policy were outweighed by the personal and practical experience that horse owners brought to my attention, including my son, Chet.
Wrap your brain around this concept for a minute; would any sane, educated adult hand over the keys to the family’s pickup truck, a credit card and a loaded AK47 to a spoiled 10 year old bully with severe personality disorders? Not in the real world; only in a science fiction, slice-and-dice, B-grade thriller would you expect to see such carnage and anarchy. But you are all in for a low cost treat as that is exactly what is going on with the two laughable cartoon characters that head the pro-horse eating organization called United Horsemen. All the cockroaches have come out on the kitchen counter to feed and poop while not one of them has a plan.
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