April 22, 2013
 

Iowa's euthanized livestock increases
 

Iowa farmers are seeing an increasing number of livestock, shipped to market being classified as "down" or non-ambulatory animals and killed at processing plants at the owner's expense.
 

Federal regulations and best practices by meat processors have established guidelines for the humane handling of "down" animals that are stressed, slow or non-ambulatory after a truck ride to a processing plant. Other animals are not to be run over a slow, down or dead animal, and the Food Safety & Inspection Service of the USDA is authorised to take "official control action" if animals are not handled properly, which could result in suspension of a plant's operations.

 

Farmers, producer groups and state legislators representing rural areas of Iowa say there has been a recent rise in the number of market hogs being euthanized - without consultation - at the producer's expense either on delivery trucks or before they reach plant scales.

 

Dan Gudenkuf, a pork producer from Ryan who markets hogs at the Farmland plant in Monmouth, Ill., said he would occasionally lose an animal in the delivery process, but in recent months, he saw the number climb to two every week that he sent a semi-load of about 175 hogs to market. He said that would amount to about a US$350 loss plus the US$25 he was assessed for destroying the animals deemed unfit for slaughter. In talking with other producers, Gudenkuf said they have had similar experiences at packing facilities in and around Iowa.

 

Farmland spokesman Chuck Sanger said 1,369 animals were euthanized at the Monmouth plant in the 2012 calendar year and an initial review of 2013 data indicated "a slightly elevated rate." He said the company did not have tracking data for prior years on the number of euthanized animals.

 

Sanger noted that a federal directive that took effect in September 2011 provided increased direction to USDA inspectors regarding oversight of all aspects of humane handling of pigs at processing plants, including special instructions for handling non-ambulatory animals.

 

"Sometimes, in order to be compliant with this expanded and comprehensive directive, euthanizing becomes necessary," he said in an email.

 

Tim Kapucian, R-Keystone, said the situation is of particular concern because the animals being destroyed are still owned by the producers on the basis of a subjective decision without giving the owners an option to reclaim the animals to salvage some value.

 

Gudenkuf said occasionally a pig will get shaky, nervous or stressed in transit and needs a little time to settle after being trucked from the farm to a processing facility. But, he said, there's been a trend by packers to be quick to decide to put an animal down and dispose of it. He added the trend has subsided somewhat in recent weeks, possibly due to increased interest in the issue by lawmakers.

 

Dan Zumbach, R-Ryan, ranking member on the Senate Agriculture Committee, said there have been several meetings at the Statehouse involving packers, producers and other interested parties regarding the situation, and he thinks steps are being taken to address the situation. He said any regulatory changes would have to be addressed by federal officials who oversee the inspections process.

 

Richard J. McIntire, public affairs specialist with the USDA's Food Safety & Inspection Service, said there have been no policy changes on the treatment of non-ambulatory animals. Tim King, a food safety and inspection district veterinary medical specialist in Ankeny, said a non-ambulatory animal could face stress issues that allow bacterial overgrowth leading to bruising or other quality issues but would not pose food safety issues.

 

Cody McKinley of the Iowa Pork Producers said unloading procedures at processing plants pose a "gray area" in the regulatory scheme because the definition of a "non-ambulatory" animal is vague. He said his organisation is pushing federal inspectors for standardised, common practices at all facilities to address the concerns that have been raised. "They have deemed that these animals are a high-risk situation that could potentially close down a plant if not handled correctly, and so they are taking it as a precautionary factor as opposed to a plant closure."

 

Brian Moore, R-Bellevue, who is a livestock producer, hog buyer and truck driver, said packing plants are very cautious about how they handle any kind of stressed, down or dead animal that comes onto their premises. Truck drivers who encounter any problems unloading animals must consult a company handler who determines the outcome going forward.