Report Documents Violations of Downer Ban

WASHINGTON - An interim ban on slaughtering downed cattle-those too sick or injured to walk-is unevenly applied at slaughterhouses across the country, according to a report released last week by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Inspector General, which found that 29 nonambulatory animals were slaughtered for food at a sample of 12 slaughterhouses checked during a 10-month period.

"There appears to be inconsistent USDA policies related to slaughtering downers/nonambulatory cattle," according to the report, which notes that "[t]he Department has widely publicized that one of the firewalls put in place to prevent the spread of BSE [mad cow disease] is the prevention of downers from entering the food supply." The agency's response indicates that it intends to clarify its instructions to inspectors, but does not indicate that the clarification will insist on a comprehensive downer ban.

The Humane Society of the United States, the nation's largest animal protection organization, reacted to the report:  "For more than three years, the USDA has broadcast its no-downer policy as a protective firewall against BSE," said Wayne Pacelle, HSUS president and CEO. "But it turns out that USDA's supposed firewall has massive holes in it, and downer livestock are entering the food supply.  This information reveals that American consumers are still at risk and it shows that animals too sick or injured to walk are still being abused by being dragged and pushed into slaughterhouses.  It is time that USDA fulfills its promises to the American people and stop the funneling of downers into the food supply."

The USDA announced an administrative ban on slaughtering downed cattle-animals too ill or injured to walk under their own power-after reporting the first case of mad cow disease in the United States in December 2003. The HSUS backed legislation to ban the slaughter of downed cattle after documenting pain and suffering inflicted on the animals, but lobbyists for the cattle and dairy industries blocked efforts to enact the ban in Congress.

To restore public and investor confidence in the safety of the food supply, USDA exerted its regulatory authority in adopting its downer ban, which was officially implemented as an interim final rule on January 12, 2004. Despite the fact that more than 99% of the approximately 22,000 comments the USDA received on the ban supported maintaining and strengthening it, the agency has still not issued a final rule implementing the policy more than three years after the discovery of mad cow disease in the U.S.

In July 2005, The HSUS along with Farm Sanctuary filed a rule-making petition with the USDA, informing the agency that it has ample legal authority to issue a final rule permanently banning the processing of "downer" cattle. The petition also states that in light of the summer 2005 announcement that a downed cow from a Texas herd tested positive for BSE, any further delay could constitute "unreasonably delayed" agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act. Specifically, the petition urged the USDA to immediately and permanently prohibit the slaughter of all nonambulatory disabled cattle for human consumption.

The IG report notes that the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service issued a policy that allows animals injured after pre-slaughter inspection to be slaughtered, in contradiction to the January 12, 2004, downer ban, which excludes "all nonambulatory disabled cattle from the human food supply, regardless of the reason for their nonambulatory status or the time at which they became nonambulatory."

As the IG report further notes, "cattle, when handled and moved under proper humane handling conditions, should not be injured while being moved in pens." So animals who become nonambulatory while at a slaughterhouse may well be displaying a subclinical weakened, disoriented or disordered gait, possible signs of central nervous system infection.

"Injuries are often the only indicator of a potentially serious neurological disease that could infect humans who consume that animal's meat," said Michael Greger, M.D., HSUS director of public health and animal agriculture. "Overlooking an injury just to squeeze more money out of a slaughter operation is playing Russian roulette with the food supply. It's simply a reckless public health policy and raises serious concerns about whether anyone can trust the food inspection process." Three of the seven documented cases of mad cow disease in North America were identified as downers due to injury, not illness, showing how difficult it is for inspectors to reliably sort out which downers are "safe" at slaughterhouses.

A truly comprehensive downer ban would encourage producers to humanely euthanize downed animals on the farm by removing the financial incentive to send suffering animals to slaughter. According to the IG report, downed cows are still apparently being hauled by forklift at slaughterhouses, and a high number of nonambulatory cattle are still arriving at slaughterhouses.

The IG report documented several other weaknesses in the USDA's BSE surveillance program. The full report is available online. The section on slaughtering downed cattle begins on page 67.

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The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization with 9.5 million members and constituents. The HSUS is a mainstream voice for animals, with active programs in companion animals and equine protection, disaster preparedness and response, wildlife and habitat protection, animals in research and farm animal welfare. The HSUS protects all animals through education, investigation, litigation, legislation, advocacy, and field work. The non-profit organization is based in Washington and has field representatives and offices across the country. On the web at hsus.org.