Contact your MP to vote for this bill !!!!!

Reposted from CHDC Release:

Important Alert!

Canada has its first Bill to ban horse slaughter!

A big thank you to NDP MP Alex Atamanenko and horse supporters everywhere for this huge, historical step toward banning horse slaughter in Canada.

Bill C-544, "An Act to amend the Health of Animals Act and the Meat Inspection Act (slaughter of horses for human consumption)", was tabled on June 16, 2010 by MP Alex Atamanenko: http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=463...

Click on the various sub-titles on the left of the document.

On June 16, 2010, a Private Member's Bill to ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption was tabled in Canadian Parliament by MP Alex Atamanenko (NDP Agriculture Critic). The basis of the bill is the fact that horses are not food-producing animals and many are treated with drugs that are prohibited from entering the human food chain.

This bill is a huge step forward in the movement to abolish a cruel, archaic and unnecessary industry, and we applaud Mr. Atamanenko for his monumental initiative.

What can horse advocates do to ensure that this bill becomes law?

There is a process involved: All Private Member's bills must be debated and pass three readings. In order to move forward, a vote must take place and a bill must have the support of the majority of Members of Parliament.

For more information on this process please click on the link below:

http://www.defendhorsescanada.org/pdf/leg_proc_canada.pdf.

While Parliament is in recess for the Summer, this is the time for horse advocates to reach out to their MP to brief them on this issue and to encourage them to support this Bill when the Fall session resumes.

To reach your MP:

Please visit this page to find your Member of Parliament: http://webinfo.parl.gc.ca/MembersOfParliament/MainConstituenciesCom....

Ask your MP to support Bill C-544!

We ask you to remind your elected official that horsemeat may contain drugs that are unsafe for human consumption. Horses are generally considered to be sport and companion animals. They are not meant to be served at dinner tables!

In February 2010, the CHDC received covert footage from two horse slaughter plants, Bouvry Exports in Fort Macleod, Alberta, and Viande Richelieu in Massueville, Quebec.

The evidence of inhumane practices as an industry norm was overwhelming. For more information from this investigation please click the link below:

http://www.defendhorsescanada.org/ChambersofCarnage.html

It is evident from this investigation that horses cannot be humanely slaughtered in an assembly-line manner.

We have also researched the troubling issue of banned drugs commonly found in horsemeat, as well as new requirements from the European Union stipulating that horsemeat for human consumption must be drug-free.

For more information on what this will mean to North America's horse industry, go here:

http://www.defendhorsescanada.org/pdf/finaldisc100314.pdf.

Read a letter from the European Commission that outlines their requirements for countries that export equine meat:

http://www.defendhorsescanada.org/pdf/residues.pdf.

Following is the media release from MP Alex Atamanenko:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JUNE 17, 2010

ATAMANENKO MOVES TO BAN HORSE MEAT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION

OTTAWA – New Democrat Agriculture Critic, Alex Atamanenko (BC southern Interior) tabled a Private Members Bill (C-544) yesterday that would effectively shut down the slaughtering of horses for human consumption in Canada.

“The fact is that drugs which are prohibited for use during the life of any animals destined for the human food supply are routinely being administered to horses,” said Atamanenko. “It is irresponsible for Canada to allow the sale of meat from horses as a food item when they have never been raised in accordance with the food safety practices required for all other animals.”

Atamanenko points to the inexpensive, easily available and widely used anti-inflammatory drug, phenylbutazone (bute), as one example of what is quite likely to be prevalent in horsemeat. Bute is a known carcinogen and its use is illegal in any animal that enters the food supply.

“It is more likely than not that the vast majority of horses will have been administered bute, or ‘horse’s aspirin’ as it is commonly called,” said Atamanenko.

According to Atamanenko, at least fifty per cent of the horses being slaughtered in Canada are imported from the US where horse slaughter has been banned. The meat is then sold to markets in Europe. There are no regulations in the US to prevent horse owners from administering banned substances because horses are not regarded or treated as food-producing animals.

Under pressure from the European Union (EU), Canada is set to introduce a new ‘equine passport’ system to track the health history and medical treatments of horses arriving at slaughterhouses, including those from the States.

Atamanenko believes that it will be impossible for CFIA to verify data in these passports and expects to see a high incidence of inaccurate records.

“Many in the US believe it should be our job to verify information from US horses since Canada is the only one slaughtering them for human consumption,” concluded the Atamanenko. “It’s a stretch to think that information on hundreds of thousands of unwanted horses that were never raised to be food, will be complete or accurate.”

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For more information:

Office of Alex Atamanenko, 613-996-8036

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POUR DIFFUSION IMMÉDIATE

LE 17 JUIN 2010

ALEX ATAMANENKO VEUT INTERDIRE LA VIANDE CHEVALINE DESTINÉE À LA CONSOMMATION HUMAINE

OTTAWA – Alex Atamanenko (Colombie-Britannique - Southern Interior), porte-parole du NPD en matière d’Agriculture, a déposé hier un projet de loi d’initiative parlementaire qui mettrait fin une fois pour toutes à l’abattage des chevaux destinés à la consommation humaine au Canada.

« Le fait est que l’on administre couramment aux chevaux des drogues dont l’utilisation est interdite pendant la vie d’un animal destiné à l’approvisionnement alimentaire », a expliqué M. Atamanenko. « C’est irresponsable pour le Canada de permettre la vente de viande chevaline en tant que nourriture lorsque ces animaux n’ont jamais été dressés conformément aux pratiques de sécurité alimentaire nécessaires pour tous les autres animaux. »

M. Atamanenko précise que la phénylbutazone (bute), une drogue peu chère, facilement accessible et utilisée par plusieurs agriculteurs comme médicament anti-inflammatoire, n’est qu’un exemple de ce qui se trouve probablement en grande partie dans la viande chevaline. La bute est une substance carcinogène connue est son utilisation est illégale pour tout animal entrant dans la chaîne alimentaire.

« Les chances sont fortes que la plupart des chevaux aient reçu des doses de bute, connue sous le nom d’aspirine pour chevaux », a affirmé M. Atamanenko.

Selon Alex Atamanenko, au moins 50 % des chevaux abattus au Canada sont importés des États-Unis, où cette pratique est interdite. La viande est ensuite vendue sur le marché européen. Aucune loi n’existe aux États-Unis pour empêcher les propriétaires de chevaux d’administrer des substances interdites aux chevaux puisque ceux-ci ne sont pas perçus ou traités comme des animaux destinés à l’alimentation.

Ressentant la pression de la part de l’Union européenne (UE), le Canada présentera sous peu un nouveau système de passeport équin pour suivre l’historique de santé et les traitements médicaux des chevaux arrivant à l’abattoir, incluant les chevaux provenant des États-Unis.

M. Atamanenko croit qu’il sera impossible pour l’ACIA de vérifier les données dans ces passeports et il s’attend à voir une incidence élevée de dossiers erronés.

« Plusieurs Américains croient que c’est notre travail de vérifier les informations sur leurs chevaux, puisque le Canada est le seul pays qui les abat à des fins de consommation humaine », a conclu Alex Atamanenko. « C’est un peu fort de croire que l’information sur des centaines de milliers de chevaux non voulus, qui n’ont jamais été dressés comme des animaux destinés à l’alimentation, sera complète et exacte. »

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Pour obtenir de plus amples renseignements, veuillez communiquer avec :

Le bureau d’Alex Atamanenko, 613-996-8036

For the horses

Your Friends at the CHDC

www.canadianhorsedefencecoalition.org

www.canadianhorsedefencecoalition.wordpress.com