Horse meat is CRUEL, and is not suitable for human consumption. Australia does not need another animal added to the list of animals slaughtered for human consumption.

The RSPCA have another policy which states “Handling of animals prior to killing must also be humane and as stress-free as possible” however, Horses in Australia are subject to long sometime interstate transporting to one of the two licensed abattoirs in Australia who kill horses for human consumption without rest, food or water, not to mention the state of the horses in sale yards, the transportation issues and treatment in knackery’s of horses killed for pet food (but this is a different issue).

In Western Australia there is no licensed abattoir for slaughtering horses for human consumption and no details have been confirmed on where these animals are being killed, however we have been informed that they are being killed in a knackery licensed to slaughter for pet food but we have been unable to confirm this.

Secondly, horses are not farmed for meat and 90% of horses sent to knackery’s are sent there due to illness or injury in which case there past owner would have medicated or treated the animal before using the last resort of sending the horse to become pet food. Therefore, the horses system will be full of drugs and medicated (Bute the anti inflammatory never leaves a horses system and is very commonly used in the horse world) they are also full of infection or diseases. People have to remember that knackery’s not only kill horses they kill sick and injured cattle and sheep that are not suitable for human consumption. 

The  WA government must be accountable for the violations that this license approval has created.