MATE O
R MEAT
?
The Hors
e Slaughte
r Debate
Should equine slaughter for human consumption be allowed in the United States?
“BAN”
$65 million
105,000 horses17,000 tons of meat
Welfare
Ban Supporters
Food safety
Society’s opinion
Unwanted horses
Export problems
Ban Opponents
Ban Opponents
Unwanted horses = starvation and neglect
Canada
Mexico
+ 148%
+ 660%
“I think the total lack of connection with agriculture is the main thing. People have passed these laws and signed on to be sponsors of a national slaughter ban, a vast majority of them are urban legislators and their constituents are people that live in suburbs that don’t know which end of a horse to feed and which end to carry stuff away from.”
Dr. Kevin Kline, University of Illinois Extension Equine Specialist
Ban Supporters
Phenylbutazone
Dewormer
Trimethoprim Sulfa
“By flooding the market with inexpensive, unsound horses, that drives the price down. When you sell a horse, you want to take a horse and you want him be surrounded by other good horses, because you’ve got a good horse and that good horse brings better money.”
Chris Heyde, Deputy Director of Government and Legal Affairs, Animal Welfare Institute
Next steps
Increase slaughterhouse
inspections
Regulate transportation
Regulate rescues
Educate horse owners
Questions?