Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue has said that “every appropriate step” is being taken in an investigation into the supply horses for slaughter.
On Wednesday night (June 12), an RTÉ Investigates programme showed footage of abuse of horses that had been sent for slaughter at the country’s only licensed equine abattoir.
The behaviour, which included the ill-treatment of dying horses, was filmed using hidden cameras in a lairage used by Shannonside Foods Ltd in Straffan, Co. Kildare.
The footage also claimed to show horses being re-microchipped at the facility prior to being slaughtered.
The programme exposed evidence of systemic flaws in the traceability of horses and how this was threatening the human food chain across Europe.
Investigation
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has confirmed that it is currently investigating the matter.
Responding to the documentary Minister Charlie McConalogue told Agriland that “some of the activity was absolutely unacceptable and abhorrent”.
He added that it was “in no way representative of the way people across this country or people in the industry care for their horses”.
“Every appropriate step that can be taken here is been taken at the moment. We have a full scale investigation underway for a period of time now in relation to what happened.
“We’ve further evidence as a result of the programme. We’ve sought all of that evidence from RTÉ and that will absolutely inform the investigation and the steps that we take here also.
“Also, we’re working in collaboration with the gardaí in relation to it as well,” he said.
When asked by Agriland if the department of agriculture could suspend operations at the horse abattoir pending the outcome of the investigation, Minister McConalogue said:
“There’s legal obligations on everyone and what we’ve seen was examples of unlawful behaviour and the full rigours of the law will be brought to bear here.
“It’s not acceptable for horses, it’s not acceptable for any sentient animal and it is not acceptable anywhere in our agri-food sector and that will be reflected in the way we address it.”
Shannonside Foods Ltd has said any allegation of an equine being mistreated “will be fully investigated by the company”.
It added that any horse presented for slaughter at the facility are checked against the Animal Identification Movement System (AIMS) which is overseen by DAFM.
The findings of the RTÉ programme have prompted investigations to be launched across Europe in relation to traceability issues for horses slaughtered for human consumption.
Traceability
Meanwhile, the chairperson of the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Jackie Cahill said that the RTÉ Investigates programmes this week raise serious concerns about the welfare and traceability of horses.
“As a committee, we’ve had concerns about traceability of horses for a period of time and we’ve had the department in with us to discuss it on a few occasions,” he said.
The Fianna Fáil TD for Tipperary said that a large number of horses are not microchipped and the emphasis on enforcement is not satisfactory.
“Horses are being grazed in large numbers and the owners of these horses are, in my opinion, moving these horses to continental Europe to get them into the food chain.
“Without microchipping and the enforced compliance of the legislation in place, there is no guarantee of the safety of meat entering the food chain.
“I would urge the department to force horse owners to present their horses for inspection to see they are compliant with legislation, and failure to do so should result in confiscation of horses,” Deputy Cahill said.