CONTINUING PROBLEMS IN USDA’S ENFORCEMENT OF THE HUMANE METHODS OF SLAUGHTER ACT HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON DOMESTIC POLICY OF THE COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION MARCH 4, 2010 Serial No. 111–136 Printed for the use of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/index.html http://www.oversight.house.gov U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 65–127 PDF WASHINGTON : 2010 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate 11-MAY-2000 13:37 May 26, 2011 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 C:\KATIES\DOCS\65127.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM EDOLPHUS TOWNS, New York, Chairman PAUL E. KANJORSKI, Pennsylvania DARRELL E. ISSA, California CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York DAN BURTON, Indiana ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, Maryland JOHN L. MICA, Florida DENNIS J. KUCINICH, Ohio MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana JOHN F. TIERNEY, Massachusetts JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR., Tennessee WM. LACY CLAY, Missouri MICHAEL R. TURNER, Ohio DIANE E. WATSON, California LYNN A. WESTMORELAND, Georgia STEPHEN F. LYNCH, Massachusetts PATRICK T. MCHENRY, North Carolina JIM COOPER, Tennessee BRIAN P. BILBRAY, California GERALD E. CONNOLLY, Virginia JIM JORDAN, Ohio MIKE QUIGLEY, Illinois JEFF FLAKE, Arizona MARCY KAPTUR, Ohio JEFF FORTENBERRY, Nebraska ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of JASON CHAFFETZ, Utah Columbia AARON SCHOCK, Illinois PATRICK J. KENNEDY, Rhode Island BLAINE LUETKEMEYER, Missouri DANNY K. DAVIS, Illinois ANH ‘‘JOSEPH’’ CAO, Louisiana CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland HENRY CUELLAR, Texas PAUL W. HODES, New Hampshire CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, Connecticut PETER WELCH, Vermont BILL FOSTER, Illinois JACKIE SPEIER, California STEVE DRIEHAUS, Ohio JUDY CHU, California RON STROMAN, Staff Director MICHAEL MCCARTHY, Deputy Staff Director CARLA HULTBERG, Chief Clerk LARRY BRADY, Minority Staff Director SUBCOMMITTEE ON DOMESTIC POLICY DENNIS J. KUCINICH, Ohio, Chairman ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, Maryland JIM JORDAN, Ohio JOHN F. TIERNEY, Massachusetts MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana DIANE E. WATSON, California DAN BURTON, Indiana JIM COOPER, Tennessee MICHAEL R. TURNER, Ohio PATRICK J. KENNEDY, Rhode Island JEFF FORTENBERRY, Nebraska PETER WELCH, Vermont AARON SCHOCK, Illinois BILL FOSTER, Illinois MARCY KAPTUR, Ohio JARON R. BOURKE, Staff Director (II) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 13:37 May 26, 2011 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 C:\KATIES\DOCS\65127.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE C O N T E N T S Page Hearing held on March 4, 2010 .............................................................................. 1 Statement of: Painter, Stanley, chairman, National Joint Council of Food Inspection Locals, American Federation of Government Employees; Bev Eggleston, owner, Ecofriendly Foods LLC; and Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO, Humane Society of the United States ......................................................... 62 Eggleston, Bev ........................................................................................... 72 Pacelle, Wayne ........................................................................................... 78 Painter, Stanley ......................................................................................... 62 Shames, Lisa, Director, Natural Resources and the Environment, Govern- ment Accountability Office; Jerold Mande, Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture; and Dean Wyatt, Food Safety and Inspection Service Supervisory Public Health Veteri- narian, Williston, VT .................................................................................... 10 Mande, Jerold ............................................................................................ 21 Shames, Lisa .............................................................................................. 10 Wyatt, Dean ............................................................................................... 38 Letters, statements, etc., submitted for the record by: Eggleston, Bev, owner, Ecofriendly Foods LLC, prepared statement of ...... 75 Jordan, Hon. Jim, a Representative in Congress from the State of Ohio, prepared statement of ................................................................................... 3 Kucinich, Hon. Dennis J., a Representative in Congress from the State of Ohio, prepared statement of .................................................................... 6 Mande, Jerold, Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture, prepared statement of ......................................................... 24 Pacelle, Wayne, president and CEO, Humane Society of the United States, prepared statement of ...................................................................... 81 Painter, Stanley, chairman, National Joint Council of Food Inspection Locals, American Federation of Government Employees, prepared state- ment of ........................................................................................................... 64 Shames, Lisa, Director, Natural Resources and the Environment, Govern- ment Accountability Office, prepared statement of .................................... 12 Wyatt, Dean, Food Safety and Inspection Service Supervisory Public Health Veterinarian, Williston, VT, prepared statement of ...................... 40 (III) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 13:37 May 26, 2011 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 C:\KATIES\DOCS\65127.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE VerDate 11-MAY-2000 13:37 May 26, 2011 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 C:\KATIES\DOCS\65127.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE CONTINUING PROBLEMS IN USDA’S EN- FORCEMENT OF THE HUMANE METHODS OF SLAUGHTER ACT THURSDAY, MARCH 4, 2010 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON DOMESTIC POLICY, COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM, Washington, DC. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 3:47 p.m. in room 2154, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Dennis J. Kucinich (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Kucinich, Cummings, and Welch. Staff present: Jaron R. Bourke, staff director; Jean Gosa, clerk; Charisma Williams, staff assistant; Leneal Scott, IT specialist, full committee; Jennifer Safavian, minority chief counsel for oversight and investigations; Marvin Kaplan, minority counsel; and Alex Cooper, minority professional staff member. Mr. KUCINICH. The committee will come to order. The Domestic Policy Subcommittee of the Oversight and Govern- ment Reform Committee now begins. I want to thank the witnesses and the members of the audience for their patience. The President had asked me to meet with him on an urgent matter, and we were there for about an hour. I was there for an hour, and then we had a series of votes. That is the reason why we are starting so late. But I am grateful for the pres- ence of the witnesses, and I look forward to your testimony. Thanks to Mr. Cummings for being here. Today’s hearing is the second Domestic Policy Subcommittee hearing on the topic of humane slaughter, the first of which was held on April 17, 2008. Today the subcommittee will examine the findings of a new Gov- ernment Accountability Office—that is the GAO—report on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s enforcement of the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act. I requested this report, along with the support of Representative Issa, in 2008. Now, without objection, I will have 5 minutes to make opening statements. If the ranking minority member has the opportunity to come, he will be granted the same, followed by opening statements not to exceed 3 minutes by any other Member who seeks recogni- tion. Without objection, Members and witnesses may have five legisla- tive days to submit a written statement or extraneous materials for the record. (1) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 13:37 May 26, 2011 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 C:\KATIES\DOCS\65127.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE 2 Mr. Jordan has an opening statement, which, without objection, will be included in the record. [The prepared statement of Hon. Jim Jordan follows:] VerDate 11-MAY-2000 13:37 May 26, 2011 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 C:\KATIES\DOCS\65127.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE 3 VerDate 11-MAY-2000 13:37 May 26, 2011 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 C:\KATIES\DOCS\65127.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE 4 Mr. KUCINICH. Good afternoon. About 2 years ago an undercover video exposing extreme abuses of downed cattle at a slaughter plant in California shocked the Na- tion. The video depicted scenes of employees at the plant ramming cows with a forklift, poking at their eyes, and repeatedly applying electrical shocks to make downed cattle regain their footing and walk to the stun box. Those were apparent violations of the Hu- mane Methods of Slaughter Act. While the USDA acted quickly, at the same time key Department officials disclaimed the extent of the problem depicted. For exam- ple, Doctor Kenneth Peterson, Assistant Administrator for the Of- fice of Field Operations, Food Safety and Inspection Service, which is also known by its acronym FSIS, said, ‘‘FSIS believes this to be an isolated incident.’’ Since that time, this subcommittee has examined the basis for USDA’s espoused confidence. What we found was USDA’s belief was not based on actual evidence. In fact, in November 2008 the Inspector