Farms.com Home   News

Horse Slaughter Exports To Mexico Decrease

Last year, 53,947 horses were shipped from the United States to Mexico for slaughter. That marks a 26% decrease from 2018 when 70,708 horses designated for slaughter were transported across the southern U.S. border, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Market News Livestock Export Summary.

 
Although Congress had made several attempts to ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption, the practice didn’t end until the nation’s three horse meat processing plants closed in 2007. Two Texas facilities were closed by court order; the Illinois plant shuttered after state legislation against horse slaughter was enacted.
 
Efforts to open new horse slaughter plants have been unsuccessful, partly because of legislation denying funds for federal inspections of such operations.
 
Nevertheless, thousands of U.S. horses have been exported to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada.
 
Canada and Mexico are two of the main exporters of horse meat to Europe, according to Humane Society International. At least 85% of horses slaughtered at European Union–approved Canadian horse slaughterhouses originated in the United States, and 50% of the horse meat produced from those animals was exported to the EU.
 
Click here to see more...

Trending Video

CEOs of the Industry: Dr. Jay Miller, The Maschhoffs

Video: CEOs of the Industry: Dr. Jay Miller, The Maschhoffs

CEOs of the Industry, we sit down with Dr. Jay Miller, CEO of The Maschhoffs, to explore his remarkable journey from veterinary consultant to executive leader at one of America’s largest family-owned pork production companies.

Dr. Miller shares how his outside-in perspective shaped his leadership approach, what it was like transitioning from advisor to CEO, and how he’s balancing the company’s proud multigenerational legacy with the need for transformation and innovation.

We dig into tough topics like navigating company contraction, reshaping culture for performance, and the critical role veterinary expertise plays at the executive level. Dr. Miller opens up about building a sustainable, modern pork business—not just environmentally, but operationally and culturally—and what it takes to attract and develop the next generation of talent in agriculture.

Looking ahead, he shares his five-year vision for The Maschhoffs and gives us a personal peek in the Fast Five round, where he reveals leadership insights, the best advice he’s received, and the three words that define The Maschhoffs in 2025.