US: Banning horse exports for slaughter might take a ride on the Farm Bill or another big spending measure

The number of horses likely being exported for slaughter has not dropped off anywhere near enough for animal activists. It is believed that Mexican slaughter plants during 2023 took 17,997 horses from Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, according to the non-governmental organization Animal Wellness Action. The Washington D.C.-based group says: “This was the most significant annual percentage increase of live exports since 2012.” It says final numbers are not yet available for live exports to Canada. The horse slaughter business in the United States effectively ended in 2007. In most years since then, appropriations acts have prohibited the Department of Agriculture (USDA) from using federal funds to inspect horses before they are slaughtered for human consumption. Therefore, there are currently no USDA-inspected horse slaughter facilities in the U.S., meaning no equine products are available for human consumption. Animal Wellness Action is pointing to the jump in horses being ...