Horsemeat: Not On My Menu
Published May 26, 2011
This said, tens of thousands of horses, many of which are discarded riding horses, stolen horses, children's ponies, carriage horses, wild horses, race horses and remnants of the Premarin industry continue to be legally shipped over the borders under conditions that are inhumane. They can be sent to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada where their meat is shipped to countries such as France, Japan, and Italy, destined for fancy restaurants that consider horsemeat a delicacy, according to various horse rights organizations, including StopHorseSlaughter.com.
Since y’all know how passionate I am about the welfare of all horses and my unyielding abhorrence toward meat packers that tremendously profit from the slaughter of these magnificent animals, you can only imagine my reaction when I read a news item concerning the popular Canadian television show “Top Chef Canada.”
An episode on the Food Network, Canada included a challenge in classic French Cuisine in which one of the chefs prepared a dish using horse meat. I consider the use of horsemeat a flagrant case of cruelty to animals, so I can’t help but wonder what they were thinking.
I am glad I am not alone in my reaction. In commenting on the episode, the Canadian Horse Defense Coalition stated, "In their triple whammy food extravaganza they manage to insult viewers, align themselves with industries synonymous with inhumane animal handling and promote dubious food eating practices, all in one sickening episode."
While my strongest objection to the airing of this show is based on the ethics of horse slaughter remaining is the question of food safety. Some horses are raised for human consumption in other countries, but if horsemeat from a U.S. carriage or race horse were eaten, a wide variety of drugs, supplements and medications given to the animal in its lifetime could then be consumed. For instance, the frequently administered painkiller, Phenylbutazone, is a carcinogenic and highly toxic to humans.
What I find even more disturbing, is that the Equine Welfare Alliance, suspects this is more than just a cooking challenge. They wrote in a press release, "The choice of horse meat was not an accidental social misjudgment, but more likely the result of influence from a well- funded public relations effort on the part of horse slaughter supporters aimed at gaining acceptance for the meat and desensitizing viewers to horse slaughter in general. Case in point, the Toronto Observer also ran a story on May 11, defending the consumption of horsemeat."
If you wish to read and share your opinions on the episode, leave comment, visit the Food Network Canada's Facebook page or find related tweets to @FoodNetworkCA with the tag #boycott.
What are your thoughts about this program? Share in a comment.
Shortly after retiring as a social worker and psychotherapist, I discovered my "writer's voice"…
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Comments (8)
Horse meat was served to Canadian (& probably American) P.O.W.s in Europe during the wars and likely is associated with many traumatic memories.
I have been boycotting this TV channel and the company that sponsors the show, Loblaw Companies Limited, who market a line of grocery items under the "President’s Choice" name, who are sponsors of this show in Canada. More info: http://canadianhorsedefencecoalition.wordpress.com/2011/05/10/food-netwo...
Why is a horse more precious than a cow, pig, chicken, turkey, lamb...? I presume all of you are vegans as opposed to hypocrites?
Both the transport of horses to slaughter and the slaughter itself is inhumane. Equipment used in the transport of horses to slaughter is designed for cows. Horses often end up trampled and injured, even dead, while being transported 24 hours or more with no food, water, or rest. The equipment used to stun the horse before being slaughtered is also made for cows. Horses are often slaughtered while still consciously alive (2,500 or more horses met their fate this way last year alone). Horse slaughter plants failed to humanely kill the horses, according to reports that audited their performance (Reports by the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies, http://cfhs.ca/files/bc_spca_cfhs_report_on_horse_slaughter_practices_in...).
Horse meat in Canada comes from horses that often suffer incredible abuse even before they arrive at slaughter. Beyond this, horse meat is likely to contain drugs that are illegal in food animals.
Last year, renowned chef at Pangaea Restaurant in Toronto, Martin Kouprie, removed horse meat from the menu because slaughterhouses cannot tell him where the horses come from and whether the meat is free of toxic substances. "I cannot in good conscience serve that to my customers," said Kouprie. "Every ingredient in my kitchen has a story, and if I don't know that story, I cannot serve it."
This does not fix the problem, but only makes it worse. Horse slaughter is going to happen all around the world, illegal or not. Making it illegal in the states means that horses will have to go on long, unsafe, crowded journeys to other countries for slaughter. Many horses die horrific deaths in the trailer before even reaching their final destination. I do not condone horse slaughter, would never eat horse meat, or ever send a horse to slaughter, but I recognize that it is a necessary evil. Horses now are starving and being neglected because owners cannot afford to feed them, cannot sell in this awful market, and now cannot send them to slaughter as a last resort. Slaughter is horrible and usually inhumane, but if a horse is going to die, wouldn't you rather it be over quickly? Rather than spend hours on a crowded trailer and possibly die on it, or be starved to death? These are the sad truths, and it was a mistake to make slaughter illegal in the states. More horses will suffer because of this.
This does not fix the problem, but only makes it worse. Horse slaughter is going to happen all around the world, illegal or not. Making it illegal in the states means that horses will have to go on long, unsafe, crowded journeys to other countries for slaughter. Many horses die horrific deaths in the trailer before even reaching their final destination. I do not condone horse slaughter, would never eat horse meat, or ever send a horse to slaughter, but I recognize that it is a necessary evil. Horses now are starving and being neglected because owners cannot afford to feed them, cannot sell in this awful market, and now cannot send them to slaughter as a last resort. Slaughter is horrible and usually inhumane, but if a horse is going to die, wouldn't you rather it be over quickly? Rather than spend hours on a crowded trailer and possibly die on it, or be starved to death? These are the sad truths, and it was a mistake to make slaughter illegal in the states. More horses will suffer because of this.
i don't think I want to eat horse meat.
The laughing about it being horse meat made my blood boil and I never watched the episode, just saw comments... the horrors that horses bound for slaughter face is no laughing matter.
From the brutal handling at auction or sale, to the horrific transport to the ultimate inhumane slaughter...
Horses were NEVER bred in the USA for human consumption, ever. The methods use to slaughter horses can NEVER be made humane, they are bright, intelligent animals with instinctive fight or flight reactions.
Foals being born on the kill floor, foals being literally thrown into the trash immediately after being bord, horses having legs ripped off in double decker trailers is beyond anything even remotely humane.
It sickens me to no end...
Jo Deibel