Other facilities do not follow the same rules as his, Donnie MacNeil says
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
The owner of a licensed abattoir in Nova Scotia is considering shutting down because of inconsistent regulation enforcement.
Donnie MacNeil, who owns Lambscapes Farm and Abattoir in Cape Breton, N.S., is upset with having to adhere to the Nova Scotia Meat Inspection Act while inspectors refuse to take action against other facilities that may operate contrary to the legislation.
“Some facilities are allowed to operate without any kind of supervision, and some of the products coming out of these facilities are making their way into the retail markets,” MacNeil told Farms.com. “New policies that require cosmetic and equipment upgrades have cost me up to $30,000, but these other places aren’t making those same upgrades. It’s almost impossible for me to compete with that.”
A provision in the Act states that producers can process their livestock if they’ve raised the animals.
But people are taking advantage of that clause, MacNeil said.
Individuals running the unchecked facilities are “buying from other farms, auction houses or stockyards and reselling it, which is against what the legislation outlines.”
MacNeil’s complaints to inspectors have also gone unanswered, he said.
“Every time I had an inspector in, I complained,” MacNeil said. “I complained at the inspector level, the supervisor level and even to the agriculture minister when (the Nova Scotia Meat Inspection Program) was administered by the agriculture ministry. But it has all fallen on deaf ears – they say they’ve had no complaints on file.
“I’ve even given the inspectors the names and addresses of some of the places in the area.”
Nova Scotia Environment now looks after conducting abattoir inspections.
Inspectors respond “and take action to curtail illegal meat processing practices,” Brian Nunn, a spokesperson with the environmental department, told CBC Monday.
Producers are “encouraged to use the facilities that best fit their needs,” Brad McCallum, executive director of the Agri-Commodity Management Association, told Farms.com.
Donnie MacNeil/Facebook photo