Text: CALGARY — Canada – and in particular Alberta – is one of the world’s biggest suppliers of horses for meat. More than 25,000 are slaughtered annually.
How many horses a year are slaughtered?
We do know that 90,000 to 140,000 horses have been sent to slaughter annually (the GAO estimated the 2011 number at 138,000), and that the total number of unwanted horses is greater than this.
Does Canada have horse slaughtering?
Horses are slaughtered in Canada primarily to provide horse meat to European and Asian countries. Horses are brought to slaughter in every possible condition—old, young, sick, healthy, injured, and even pregnant.
Does Canada export live horses for slaughter?
Canada has become the leading horse meat supplier and distributor, exporting over 4,800 live horses each year. Most of the live horses are shipped to Japan where they are slaughtered to produce thinly sliced horse flesh called “basashi”, a popular delicacy.
How many racehorses slaughter each year?
According to the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, approximately 7,5000 thoroughbreds are slaughtered for human consumption each year.
What country slaughters the most horses?
China
Production
| Country | Production (tonnes) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | China | 200,452 |
| 2. | Kazakhstan | 126,520 |
| 3. | Mexico | 83,922 |
| 4. | Mongolia | 57,193 |
What do they do with slaughtered horses?
These horses would be sold, donated or otherwise rehomed; however, kill buyers outbid legitimate horse owners and rescues at auctions, robbing horses of ever having a second chance at life. The idea of slaughtering companion animals is unacceptable to the American people and will never be embraced.
How much do slaughterhouses pay for horses?
Horses are sold at action by the pound. In general, the average horse sells for about $400-$500. All of this is very normal…
Where do horses go to get slaughtered?
In most countries where horses are slaughtered for food, they are processed in industrial abattoirs similarly to cattle. Typically, a penetrating captive bolt gun or gunshot is used to render the animal unconscious.
How can we stop horse slaughter in Canada?
CONTACT YOUR MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT. Canadian? Contact your Member of Parliament and tell them you are opposed to the slaughter of horses within Canada. Tell them you oppose the live inhumane transport of horses from Canada to any other market for slaughter.
How does Japan slaughter horses?
Every year, hundreds of Thoroughbreds from the U.S. are sold to stables in Japan, where 90% of all horses end up in slaughterhouses. In most Japanese slaughterhouses, horses meet a frightening death. They are killed, are cut apart, and end up as food for dogs and humans.
What does Japan do with horse meat?
In Japan horse meat is eaten in the form of sashimi, in thin slices dipped in soy sauce. In countries like Kazakhstan and Switzerland it’s served as steak and sausage.
Are animals slaughtered humanely in Canada?
Canadian law requires that all licence holders who operate slaughter establishments under federal regulations, ensure that all species of food animals are handled and slaughtered humanely; starting with their arrival at the establishment, until slaughter in the facility.
What is horse meat called in Canada?
Horsemeat, or chevaline as it is called in French, can still be found in specialty butcher shops and grocery stores in Quebec and on the menus of a few high-end Montreal restaurants. The real money, though, is in the overseas market; the live horse trade represents $20 million in sales for Canadian shippers.
What is horse meat used for in Canada?
Horse meat is not really a thing in Canada. There is some demand for it in certain parts of the French-speaking province of Quebec, but generally speaking, we don’t eat horses here.
Why are horses shot and not euthanized?
When the horse is shot the effect is instantaneous although you need to expect some reflex limb movements. Two advantages of shooting are cheaper disposal and euthanasia. It is sometimes a better and more dignified end for a horse that is very needle shy.
Does Taco Bell use horse meat?
A Taco Bell spokesman said the company had voluntarily ordered testing of its beef products in light of the scandal affecting other European retailers and food manufacturers. “Based on that testing, we learned ingredients supplied to us from one supplier in Europe tested positive for horse meat,” he said.
Who eats slaughtered horses?
The top 10 horse meat-producers order are China, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Mongolia, Russia, the United States, Canada, Brazil, Australia, and Kyrgyzstan. Surprisingly, although horse meat is consumed in most of Europe and Asia, there are a few countries that stray away from eating horse.
Where do they eat horse meat?
In many other nations, however, eating horse meat is no big deal – and in some cultures, it’s even considered a delicacy. Mexico, Switzerland, Kazakhstan, Belgium, Japan, Germany, Indonesia, Poland and China are among the nations where many people eat horse meat without a second thought.
Are wild horses sold for slaughter?
This charge is absolutely false. The Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Land Management care deeply about the well-being of wild horses, both on and off the range, and it has been and remains the policy of the BLM not to sell or send wild horses or burros to slaughter.
What is the meat of horse called?
Horse meat, or chevaline, as its supporters have rebranded it, looks like beef, but darker, with coarser grain and yellow fat.