WATCH ABOVE: 16×9’s investigation “Tainted Meat”
Humane Society International announced today a campaign calling on MP’s to support more stringent legislation in Canada’s horse slaughter industry.
The call comes amid growing concerns about the safety of horse meat, which many critics say may contain veterinary drugs that are banned for human consumption by health authorities. There is a long list of such drugs, including phenylbutazone, which studies have linked to potentially fatal blood disorders.
On March 8th, a 16×9 investigation took viewers inside Canada’s slaughter pipeline, raising questions about the potential dangers of consuming horse meat, and the lack of documentation of drug histories and testing of horses by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
READ MORE: Tainted meat: Banned veterinary drugs found in horse meat
NDP MP Alex Atamanenko has tabled a private member’s bill that would require horses to have lifetime medical treatment records before being slaughtered.
The CFIA told 16×9 its testing shows a high rate of compliance with industry standards, but refused to answer direct questions about its monitoring and testing policies.
READ MORE: 16×9 investigation: Canada’s horse slaughter industry under fire
The safety of horse meat has also become an issue in Europe recently, where tainted meat scandals and cruelty concerns in the horse meat industry have prompted some supermarkets to stop selling horse meat.
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