Our success for horses: Europe no longer imports Canadian horse meat
The EU and Switzerland have not imported horse meat from Canada for over a year. This is shown by import statistics. It is a great success, and one in which we have played a significant role through our work.
When we started our project 13 years ago, Canada was still the largest supplier of horse meat in Europe. In collaboration with a partner organisation from the USA, we spent years documenting the conditions in which horses were kept in Canadian feedlots and slaughterhouses, as well as raising awareness of the poor treatment they received. Many of the horses were transported from the USA to Canada for days before they were left to languish in the feedlots without care or exercise. Sick and injured animals were left to fend for themselves. The sole aim was to produce as much meat as possible for export.
As a result of our revelations, demand for Canadian horse meat in the EU and Switzerland has steadily declined over the years. In addition, an EU regulation introduced in 2017 made the meat much more expensive, further reducing demand: horses from the USA (most of which are imported for this purpose) may only be slaughtered after spending six months in Canada.
The fact that imports of Canadian horse meat have now come to a complete standstill is an important achievement, and it motivates us to continue fighting against the import of horse meat produced in such cruel ways. However, horse meat from Argentina and Uruguay is still being imported into Europe, and it is produced in a manner that is cruel to animals. We therefore call for an immediate ban on imports of horse meat from countries that do not meet EU animal welfare standards.
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