94% of Americans support HR1942 - Safeguard American Food Exports Act. This bill seeks to stop the hundreds of thousands of American horses from being exported live to foreign soil for purposes slaughter. It is poisoning the food supply and is cruelly inhumane according to GAO, AMVA, HSUS standards.

America's horses are raised as companion animals. FDA classifies them as nonfood animals - they are medicated with toxic carcinogenic substances frequently. Although Americans have spoken loud and clear that they do NOT support horse slaughter it continues via export in a legislative loophole. However because of their medicated status American horsemeat has been found to be carcinogenic & pathogenic. Not only has horsemeat been found in USDA ground meat, it is found frequently replacing more expensive meats in documented worldwide food fraud.We find it irresponsible at best to allow proven disease causing meat to be exported as food; and reprehensible to allow the practice of horse slaughter to continue when Americans have shown time and again they oppose horse slaughter.

Congressman Yoho formerly a large animal veterinarian for 28 yrs knows well that horses are treated as athletes, companions and NOT as food animals; that exporting them into global food supply is reckless endangerment, precipitating aplastic anemia and other bone marrow disease - considered carcinogenic. That 210 members of Congress have found that " unlike cows, pigs, and other domesticated species, horses are NOT raised for the purpose of human consumption, they are treated with substances that are not approved for use in horses intended for human consumption and equine parts are therefore unsafe within the meaning of section 409 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act; equines raised in the United States are frequently treated with drugs, including phen­yl­bu­ta­zone, acepromazine, boldenone un­dec­y­len­ate, omep­ra­zole, ketoprofen, xy­la­zine, hy­al­uron­ic acid, ni­tro­fu­ra­zone, polysulfated gly­cos­ami­no­gly­can, clenbuterol, tolazoline, and ponazuril, which are not approved for use in horses intended for human consumption and equine parts are therefore unsafe within the meaning of section 512 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

One USDA/APHIS study found that 92% of slaughtered horses are younger than age 9 and in good health. USDA records continue to show 70- 80% of the slaughtered are quarterhorses. This suggests that the majority of slaughter victims are cast off underperforming sporthorses who are most likely highly medicated. In fact thoroughbreds have been traced to slaughterhorses within days of racing and related injection medications banned in food animals. Tainted American horsemeat has resulted in the EU suspending imports of Mexican horsemeat and diminished trade with Canadian horsemeat.

The disposed of horses , young and healthy, just not useful to their owners any longer represents corporate for profit industry dumping toxic waste into the FOOD CHAIN.  Horses are FDA non compliant , KNOWN to be medicated in CONTRAINDICATION to USDA standards. There are no inspections, NO regulations and this is a hot mess of unethical irresponsible, illogical  reckless behavior.  Horses are not raised for food. They are atheletes. Expensive performance investments...can and should be disposed of as medical waste if need be.

Because horses are not raised for slaughter they must be "purchased". Killbuyers travel to auctions where conditions are inhumane; they use internet marketing of cheap horses and frequently employ deceptive techniques to defraud horseowners. Stolen horses international finds that 60% of stolen horses end up at slaughterhouses - untraceable. Most killbuyers are convicted criminals and rare to recover stolen horses from their network. Horses travelling to slaughter facilities are not required to have travel paperwork that other equines must possess which facilitates theft and fraud.

95% of Floridians support HR1942; 94% nationally (Popvox.com) and 210 of our nation's Congressmen and women support this bill. HR1942 is not only the will of the people you are elected to represent, until passed there is an imminent threat to the global food supply. Purposefully, knowingly, contaminating peoples food constitutes bioterrorism.