New cattle-slaughter rule tough to enforce?
Massive meat recall of last year leads to a ’complete ban’ on downer cows I remember it well.
Around this time last year, the nation watched in horror as workers at California slaughtering company Westland/Hallmark Meat used forklifts, electric prods and water hoses to move cows too sick to walk to the killing floor.
An undercover animal rights worker videotaped the cruelty, and days later, the nation quivered in the wake of the biggest beef recall in American history.
More than 37 million pounds of meat were yanked out of school lunch cafeterias because of the government’s warning that the food was unfit for humans. About 143 million pounds were recalled nationwide.
Trust me. Nobody wanted these cows ending up on their plates.
Experts say that cattle too sick to walk have a higher risk of having mad cow disease. Yuck!
This recall finagled its way back into the news this past week as the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a rule to change to the existing federal meat inspection regulations. Before, the laws called for a "general" ban on slaughtering "downer" cows. Now, the law requires a "complete ban on the slaughter of cattle that become non-ambulatory disabled after passing initial inspection."
Sounds good to me. After all, mad cow disease proves deadly for humans, although the USDA says the risk of contracting mad cow disease is "extremely low." Only two animals tested positive for the disease since June 2004, and in that time period, more than 759,000 animals have been tested.
But the mere thought of millions of pounds of meat being yanked from production because of a few non-walking cows gave inspection officials reason to pause and review.
According to the animal-protection group The Animal Welfare Institute, more than 10 percent of USDA-issued humane-slaughter violations included improper treatment of animals that couldn’t walk.
The Institute also said that 501 humane-handling or slaughtering violations have occurred at slaughter plants across the nation in past years, and the list of horrors stretches long and far.
At one plant, a fallen cow was pushed more than a dozen feet with a forklift. Other cows were dragged to the slaughter. Others were trampled and stood on by other cows. Even more cows were poked with an electric prod over and over until they finally stood.
AMI, the meat industry’s leading trade group, opposed the USDA’s new ban, saying it would mean millions of pounds of wholesome meat would be lost. The group said as many as 25,000 cows per year would be affected by the ban.
But this could be difficult to enforce.
Less than 2 percent of the USDA’s inspection activities focus on live animals. Instead, the majority focuses on the meat, not the animal.