Wednesday, June 20, 2012

House panel votes for new ban on horse slaughter

Horse slaughterhouses would again be effectively banned in the U.S. if the House Appropriations Committee has its way. The panel voted Tuesday to bar the Department of Agriculture from spending any money on inspection of horse abattoirs, thus preventing their operation. Such a ban was imposed several years ago but was dropped in a House-Senate conference committee last year.

No horse slaughterhouses have opened since then, partly because of the uncertainty about federal policy, and clues were scant Tuesday about the future of the amendment by Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., to the USDA appropriations bill. Sara Gonzalez of Agri-Pulse reports that the amendment passed on a voice vote after Moran said, “Industrial slaughter of horses should not be condoned by the U.S. government. We have to put an end once and for all to this practice.”

Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., said "It is more inhumane to let a horse die by the side of the road" than to kill it in a slaughterhouse. Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga., chairman of the agriculture appropriations subcommittee, said the government needs to allow U.S. producers to meet demand for horse meat in Asia and Europe. "This is a 100 percent emotional issue," he said. Agri-Pulse notes that the ban "is a long-standing priority of the Humane Society of the United States."

Agri-Pulse is a subscription-only weekly newsletter, but it offers a four-week trial subscription.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Please OPPOSE removal of Congressman James Moran’s Amendment to Prohibit Funding of USDA Inspections at Horse Slaughter Houses in the United States.

Here is the message politicians need to recieve: Please support and Vote YES on the Bill IF it INCLUDES Congressman James Moran’s Amendment to Prohibit Funding of USDA Inspections at Horse Slaughter Houses in the United States.

Here is why: As a voting taxpayer, thousands do NOT want TAX Dollars wastefully spent for Funding of USDA Inspections at Horse Slaughter Houses. It is OUTRAGEOUS that Special Interests will receive Subsidies on Horse Slaughter Plant and income tax breaks. I do NOT want a further financial burden added to our currently compromised Food Budget of the USDA..

The devastation of towns and the burden on their local economy and governments where Horse Slaughter Plants are located will significantly strain their economy (except for the small amount of businesses that employees working in the plant frequent). Surrounding ecosystems will be significantly compromised due to the resulting plant waste. Because of this real estate values will go down~no one wants that in their back yard. Also, horse slaughter in United States does not mean less abandoned horses. Stopping breeding horses *does*, but the location of where horses are slaughtered has no bearing whatsoever on less abandoned horses~it is just common sense. Well over 100,000 United States horses are slaughtered annually and have been for decades..

Anonymous said...

Please OPPOSE removal of Congressman James Moran’s Amendment to Prohibit Funding of USDA Inspections at Horse Slaughter Houses in the United States.

Here is the message politicians need to recieve: Please support and Vote YES on the Bill IF it INCLUDES Congressman James Moran’s Amendment to Prohibit Funding of USDA Inspections at Horse Slaughter Houses in the United States.

Here is why: As a voting taxpayer, thousands do NOT want TAX Dollars wastefully spent for Funding of USDA Inspections at Horse Slaughter Houses. It is OUTRAGEOUS that Special Interests will receive Subsidies on Horse Slaughter Plant and income tax breaks. I do NOT want a further financial burden added to our currently compromised Food Budget of the USDA..

The devastation of towns and the burden on their local economy and governments where Horse Slaughter Plants are located will significantly strain their economy (except for the small amount of businesses that employees working in the plant frequent). Surrounding ecosystems will be significantly compromised due to the resulting plant waste. Because of this real estate values will go down~no one wants that in their back yard. Also, horse slaughter in United States does not mean less abandoned horses. Stopping breeding horses *does*, but the location of where horses are slaughtered has no bearing whatsoever on less abandoned horses~it is just common sense. Well over 100,000 United States horses are slaughtered annually and have been for decades..