By Jeff Apel

A plant in DeKalb, Illinois, that is the last of three foreign-owned plants in the United States slaughtering horses for human consumption could be forced to close following a recent federal court order.The order by United States District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly stated it is illegal for slaughterhouses to pay the United States Department of Agriculture for inspection costs. The USDA agreed to allow plants to pay for inspection costs after Congress eliminated funding for them in 2005.

Kollar-Kotelly issued her opinion in response to a lawsuit filed in February 2006 by the Humane Society of the United States and other organizations that challenged the USDA’s decision.
 
Following the ruling, the USDA pulled its on-site inspectors from the DeKalb plant, which continued on Thursday to process meat from horses that have already been slaughtered, the Chicago Tribune reported. Trucks carrying horses to the plant were sent back to suppliers.

“The latest ruling restores the will of Congress and should shut down all three U.S. horse slaughter houses,” Wayne Pacelle, president and chief executive officer of the Humane Society of the United States, said. “It’s time for the foreign-owned plants to cease all operations and recognize the will of the courts, the will of Congress, and the will of the people of America.”

According to the USDA, 100,800 horses were slaughtered last year at the plants, which are also located in Fort Worth and Kaufman, Texas. The Texas plants were recently forced to cease slaughter operations after an appellate court upheld a Texas law that that makes it illegal to sell, possess, and transport horsemeat for sale for human consumption overseas.

“The American public has overwhelmingly opposed the slaughter of America’s horses for human consumption and now the courts have declared horse slaughter to be illegal,” said Chris Heyde, deputy legislative director for the Society for Animal Protection Legislation. “While horses can no longer be butchered in the U.S., they can be hauled under appalling conditions to an even more brutal death in plants across the U.S. border. Congress must pass federal legislation to extend the protections to all horses and to send a clear message to those few who profit from the barbaric trade.”

HR503 and S311, companion bills introduced in the House of Representatives and Senate, would ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption and prohibit the transport of horses outside of the United States for slaughter.
Last year, a similar measure was passed by the House 263-146 but was not voted on by the Senate before Congress adjourned in December.

Jeff Apel is a Thoroughbred Times assistant daily news editor