May 5, 2009

The US has intervened in a civil lawsuit against Chino, California-based Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. for submitting false and fraudulent claims to the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), the Justice Department announced Friday (May 1). 

The AMS is a division of the USDA. Westland/Hallmark is a former supplier to the National School Lunch Programme.

The company's ground beef was recalled by USDA as of February 16, 2008, and it no longer supplies beef to the programme.

The suit was originally filed by the Humane Society of the US, which said the company knowingly and falsely represented to AMS that all cattle at their slaughtering facility are humanely-handled in accordance with federal regulations and that no meat from disabled, non-ambulatory cattle was included in AMS' purchases.

The misrepresentations could have impacted the health of the country's schoolchildren, and the intervention demonstrates how seriously such allegations will be pursued, according to Tony West, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department's Civil Division.

The government plans to file an amended complaint. The USDA's Office of Inspector General investigated the matter.

Last year, the USDA issued recalls for 143 million pounds of frozen beef from Westland/Hallmark after an undercover Humane Society video surfaced showing crippled and sick animals being shoved with forklifts. Authorities said the video showed workers kicking, shocking and abusing animals that were apparently too sick or injured to walk.

Federal regulations require downer cattle to be kept out of the food supply as they may pose a higher risk of disease from E. coli, salmonella or mad cow disease.