Sinikka Crosland, Executive Director,
Canadian Horse Defence Coalition
October 2012
“Once again we see CFIA turn a blind eye and choose to protect industry
profits rather than do their job”, says Crosland. “The CFIA's mandate is
both to protect human health and monitor animal welfare. We recently have
seen them fail to protect the public from contaminated meat and now we have
clear evidence of them failing to follow their own regulations when it comes
to the live transport of horses for meat.”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 18, 2012, Calgary, Alberta - Footage taken of Alberta horses being
shipped live to Japan for slaughter shows that the Canadian Food Inspection
Agency (CFIA) is violating their own standards set forth in the Health of
Animals Regulations. The Regulations prohibit the transportation of all
animals under conditions that would expose the animals to undue injury or
suffering.
The 2012 footage shows horses in a feedlot being loaded with electric prods
into transport trucks, transported to the Calgary International Airport and
being crated in wooden crates so small they cannot stand in their natural
position, in violation of Section 142 of the Health of Animals Regulations
(“No person shall transport or cause to be transported animals in a railway
car, motor vehicle, aircraft or vessel unless each animal is able to stand
in its natural position without coming into contact with a deck or roof.”)
Some horses were even being crated together, even though it is in violation
of Section 141.8 of the Health of Animals Regulations, which states that
horses over 14 hands high need to be segregated for air transport.
Canadian draft horses from various producers are routinely live shipped to
Japan for slaughter from the Calgary and Winnipeg International Airports. On
arrival in Japan, horses are transported to a feedlot; once they reach
desired weight they are slaughtered for horse sashimi, which is considered
to be a delicacy in Japan. The meat must be eaten within three days because
it is highly perishable; according to the 2008 Alberta Horse Welfare Report,
each Canadian horse is worth approximately $20,000.
“Footage shows large horses overcrowded (not segregated) into wooden
transport crates, often unable to stand in their natural position for a long
journey to Japan, in clear violation of two of the CFIA's own regulations”,
says Sinikka Crosland, executive director with the Canadian Horse Defence
Coalition. These transport conditions not only are inhumane but also are
likely to lead to injuries and potential deaths during transport.
“Once again we see CFIA turn a blind eye and choose to protect industry
profits rather than do their job”, says Crosland. “The CFIA's mandate is
both to protect human health and monitor animal welfare. We recently have
seen them fail to protect the public from contaminated meat and now we have
clear evidence of them failing to follow their own regulations when it comes
to the live transport of horses for meat.”
For further information, please contact: Sinikka Crosland, Executive
Director, Canadian Horse Defence Coalition. Tel: 250-681-1408
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