Two bills making their way through the Oklahoma State Capitol that would legalize horse slaughter for human consumption made significant progress this past week. House Bill 1999 and Senate Bill 375 were both passed in their respective branches late Wednesday.
Horse slaughter - Pros and cons
Passage of bills before the Oklahoma Legislature would end the horse slaughter ban while continuing to prohibit the sale of horsemeat for human consumption in the state.
The ban against horse slaughter was imposed when Congress prevented the USDA from doing inspections at slaughter plants. Now that the prohibition has been lifted, USDA inspection services can again be offered at equine slaughter operations.
An undetermined number of applications for equine inspection services are believed to be pending at USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).
Four states, California, Illinois, Texas, and Oklahoma, have state bans on slaughtering horses for commercial purposes. Passage of the Oklahoma Legislature bills will end the slaughter ban while continuing to prohibit the sale of horsemeat for human consumption in the state.
Proponents of the bills say legalizing horse slaughter in Oklahoma would actually improve conditions of some horses across the state.
Rep. Skye McNiel said passage of the bill could provide a humane option for unwanted, aging horses, many of which are abandoned or eventually shipped to horse slaughtering facilities in Mexico. She said where she lives in rural Oklahoma, older horses often are abandoned on dead end roads or pastures by people who can no longer afford to care for them.
But Oklahoma animal activist Jamee Suarez says the legislation wouldn't help the state's image.
"I am concerned about Oklahoma's reputation, it would be a black eye to Oklahoma," said Suarez, Oklahoma Alliance for Animals president. She also has a problem with the act of slaughter itself."It's a cruel barbaric way of killing our horses, and horses are considered pets," she said.
Both bills are halfway through the legislative process. If approved, horse slaughter for human consumption would be legal Nov. 1. The meat would be shipped outside the country and not be used in the United States, as the sale of horse meat is currently illegal.