Food safety concerns regarding horsemeat imports from non-EU countries

Dr. Joanna SwabeEU Executive Director, Humane Society International

Horsemeat: importing cruelty

Collaboration between Humane Society International and The Humane Society of the United States on horsemeat issue since 2010

Background: US horse slaughter plants shut down in 2007 Horses bought up at auction by ‘kill buyers’ and shipped to Mexico

and Canada for slaughter (for export) under poor welfare conditions Majority of horsemeat then exported to the EU Impossible to curtail imports on animal welfare grounds

Since July 2010, only horses with a known lifetime veterinary treatment history & correct withdrawal periods may be slaughtered for export

Third countries must have appropriate residue control plans & rules on equine identification

EU import requirements

Horsemeat imported from Canada and Mexico does not meet EU food safety standards

No mandatory lifetime veterinary recordkeeping for horses in the US

Ubiquitous use of drugs banned for use in food animals in equines in the US

Failure to comply with EU food safety standards

Some of the substances routinely administered to horses in the US and banned for use in food animals

FVO audit findings • Veracity & reliability of vendor statements regarding veterinary

medical history of US horses cannot be guaranteed Canada 2010, 2011 & Mexico 2010, 2011, 2012

• Traceability: impossible to guarantee medical history due to changes in ownership & sale by auction

• Routine fraud identified with identification & vendor statements for US horses

• FVO audits in South America indicate similar problems with traceability & fraud Argentina 2011, Brazil 2011 & Uruguay 2010

2014 EP Resolution on ‘The food crisis, fraud in the food chain and the control thereof’

“urges the Commission and Member States to act on the findings of FVO audits with regard to fraudulent medical treatment records of animals destined for slaughter for export to the EU, and to exclude meat and other animal products from third countries, which cannot be guaranteed to be compliant with EU food safety requirements, from being placed on the EU market.“

What kind of trade restrictive measures can the EU take?

International trade law must inform

political & legislative action WTO principles: non-discrimination &

non-restrictiveness A ban would be perceived as an automatic

violation of GATT art. XI EU major domestic producer & cannot

discriminate against imports from outside EU = protectionist

HSI’s call for a moratorium on horsemeat imports from non-EU countries

A moratorium avoids risk of a WTO challenge due to inherent impermanency

A moratorium would be necessarily constructed in a conditional way (i.e. no imports permitted unless conditions are met)

Less discriminatory & more even-handed because compliance with conditions rather than national origin determines placing on EU market

HSI therefore urges Commission to protect EU consumers by suspending horsemeat imports that do not meet EU import requirements

Thank you for your attention!

hsieurope.org