Sunday, May 20, 2012

Horse advocates want fines on NM slaughterhouse

Tuesday's Horse


Cross-posted from the Alamogordo Daily News

VIA THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Horses tagged for slaughter for human consumption.
Just because there is a market for horse meat in some countries does not mean the U.S. must be their supplier.
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — A Colorado-based horse advocacy group says a New Mexico company seeking to become the nation’s first slaughterhouse for horses since 2007 should face fines for violating laws on waste disposal.
The Albuquerque Journal reports (http://bit.ly/J9Fxis) that the state Environment Department received a letter this week from Front Range Equine Rescue calling for fines against Valley Meat Co. The Roswell-area slaughterhouse has hauled 400 tons of composted cattle parts from its property, after two years of prodding by the state Environment Department.
But Front Range Equine Rescue said the company should still be fined for past offenses highlighted by a USDA inspector in January 2010.
Fines can reach $5,000 daily per violation, so Valley Meat could be subject to millions in fines. However, Auralie Ashley-Marx, chief of the Environment Department’s Solid Waste Bureau, said Friday that there are mitigating circumstances, such as the recent removal of the waste and the lack of a market for De Los Santos’ compost.
“This is not a black and white case,” she said. “Sometimes there are limiting factors that are difficult to overcome.” Continue reading >>









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