on the subject of horsemeat

[Minimor]

In Canada this law goes into effect as of July 31st, so any horse owners planning to sell their horse for slaughter after that date will have to have 6 months worth of health records on the horse. This law will apply to horses coming in from the US as well. Assuming that Mexico is selling horse meat to Europe & wants to continue doing so, they will presumably have to meet the same requirement--but as the article says, Mexico hasn't yet indicated how they will comply.

http://www.avma.org/onlnews/javma/mar10/100315j.asp

I'm guessing this will mean that at the auction sales the meat men will require horses to come with their 6 months health record; those that don't will have to spend 6 months in a feed lot before they go to slaughter. I just hope that Mexico does come up with the same requirement, so that we don't see all US horses going to Mexico, instead of some of them coming up to Canada for slaughter. I do truly believe that the horses who are sent to Canada have it much better than those that go to Mexico.

In discussions here some people have suggested that killer sales may become a thing of the past, and open auction sales will be a place where horses sell to real people, not to the killers. I have my doubts about that--there are so many people who don't buy at sales, so few horses that actually sell to real buyers at many of the open auctions, I just don't see the sales being profitable to run if the kill buyers aren't there. I guess it will be interesting to see.

I just hope that the horses who must spend longer periods of time in the feed lots because of this law will be humanely treated. It will be sad if this just results in a longer period of suffering for some of these horses.

 

[krissy3]

nicely stated , and so true...I hope this works out for the best possible treatment of the horses too. I also believe that Canada is a lot more humaine then Mexico. It would be great if we could no longer support their slaughterhouses, at least until they clean up their act, and that goes for cattle , pig and chickens too . (turkys also) Here in Switzerland it is now forbidden to kill fish by putting them in a large tumbler with ice to bash them up and freez them. you now have to use electric shock in water ... sounds gorey , but very quick. I doubt Europe imports horse meat from Mexico... it would be too costly, but I bet south of mexico would be where the finantial support comes from , but I dont know .

 

[HGFarm]

Yeah, I dont know anything about them, but I think I would really be upset to visit a slaughter house in Mexico................. Just a gut feeling (no pun intended)

Interesting that that law came about... I am sure some of the horses being sold at auction are full of medications- pain killers, antibiotics and who knows what? Who wants to eat that in their meat?!! Of course, it can't be much worse than the crap they legally put in our meat anyhow or what they are fed pri- hormones, etc...