Activist report finds humane slaughter enforcement lacking

A new report from the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) concludes that the level of enforcement of the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act varies dramatically by state, and says repeat violators are a major problem. Overall, humane slaughter enforcement remains low in comparison with other aspects of food safety enforcement, states the report, which is titled, “Humane Slaughter Update: Federal and State Oversight of the Welfare of Meat Animals at Slaughter.” AWI assigns a grade, from A to F, to each of the 27 state-operated meat inspection programs, based on how well they enforce the federal humane slaughter law. Louisiana stands at the bottom of the rankings due to its failure to take any enforcement action for inhumane slaughter in over 12 years, according to the report.