Saturday, June 30, 2007

Last US horse slaughterhouse appears to be closed for good

In a story I've been covering for the last three months, it appears that the last slaughterhouse that processes horsemeat for human consumption--albeit to be shipped overseas--will remain closed.

The shuttered slaughterhouse, owned by the Belgian firm Cavel International, is located in DeKalb, Illinois, sixty miles west of Chicago.

Cavel's lawyers will appeal Thursday's ruling by federal judge that kept a the plant open during the appeal process. Governor Rod Blagojevich signed into law banning the practice of slaughtering horses for human consumption last month.

On the federal end, a different federal judge ruled that slaughterhouses didn't have the authority to directly pay US Department of Agriculture meat inspectors. Last year, a law took effect that fulled public funding of the inspectors.

Cavel has two big legal obstacles to overcome to re-open--its struggle may not be insurmountable, but it's darn close.

I got a lot of heat from commenters on my earlier horse-slaughter posts. It looks like that horse lovers have won, but it'll be interesting to see what becomes of horses that owners no longer want to care for. And because of the push for ethanol, animal feed costs are skyrocketing.

Related posts:

Bo Derek rallies horse slaughter opponents to victory in Ill. House

Horse of a different color on abandoned equines story

Abandoned horses in Eastern Kentucky

Horses reprieve from slaughterhouse only temporary: UPDATED

Hey, another horse slaughter post

Last US horse slaughterhouse shut down, unwanted horse problem will worsen

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