Farm Animals
Can More and Better Regulation Stop the Cruelty in the Cattle Slaughterhouses?
The U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Domestic Policy Subcommittee held a hearing on April 17 called "After the Beef Recall: Exploring Greater Transparency in the Meat Industry".
The Subcommittee, chaired by Rep.
Colorado Moves to End Factory Farming Abuses
Colorado has become the fourth state along with Florida, Arizona and Oregon to ban gestation crates for pregnant pigs. It has become the second state along with Arizona to make it illegal to keep veal calves in too small enclosures.
S.B. 201 has now passed both the Colorado House and Senate and has been sent to Governor Bill Ritter for signature.
Iowa Bill Says Horses are No Longer Livestock - and That's a Good Thing!
Like a number of states, for purposes of the animal cruelty laws, Iowa classifies equines as livestock.
In Iowa it is illegal for someone to injure or destroy someone else's livestock intentionally such as by poisoning, shooting or trapping. Iowa Code § 717.1A
Help Make Torture of a Horse a Felony in Hawaii!
Update March 27, 2008: S.B. 2895 has now passed the House Judiciary Committee! It is on to the full House for a vote.
Click here to contact Hawaii representatives to urge their support of this bill.
For more informaiton on this bill, read Animal Law Coalition's earlier report below.
USDA Criticized for Not Knowing About Horrific Abuse of Cattle at Slaughterhouse
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U.S. Senate Appropriations subcommittee held a hearing yesterday on the Hallmark/Westland recall of 143 million pounds of meat. Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI) lambasted Secretary of the U.S. Dept.
Are the Voluntary Efforts of Some Companies to Phase Out Factory Farming Abuses Enough?
Last fall the Safeway grocery chain announced it will give preferences to suppliers that are moving away from gestation crates for pigs, an additional 5% of its purchases will come from these suppliers in the first year with 10% in the second year and 15% in year 3.
Hallmark/Westland Likely to Shut Down Permanently
You can help protect these animals.
Update: February 25, 2008: Officials at Hallmark/Westland Meat have announced the company is likely to shut down permanently because of financial difficulties following an undercover investigation that revealed cruel treatment of downed cows at its facility in Chino, California.
California Initiative to Stop Farm Animal Abuse Will be on November Ballot!
Update February 28, 2008: Thanks to your help Californians for Humane Farms has obtained nearly 800,000 signatures, far more than the 650,000 needed to get the California Prevention of Farm Cruelty Act on the November 4, 2008 ballot.
FDA Approves Use of Cloned Animals for Food
Update January 18, 2007: Despite a finding by the Senate in the Farm bill that more study is needed, the Food and Drug Administration decided this week to allow production and marketing of food from cloned animals except sheep.
The FDA explained, "Extensive evaluation of the available data has not identified any subtle hazards that might indicate food consumption risks in healthy clones of cattle, swine or goats".
It's Time the Downed Animal and Food Safety Protection Act Became Law!
There are bills pending in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate that would require humane treatment of sick or injured livestock and ban the use of these "downed" animals for human food. Earlier versions of these bills were defeated.