UPDATE: If you're interested in this subject, you've got to check out the Doreen the Downer cartoon.
Something that's been glossed over in many of the news articles and blog posts about the recent HSUS undercover investigation and the resulting massive ground beef recall is the fact that downer cows -- those that are unable to stand and walk -- are entering our food supply every day. As long as they're looked at and approved by a USDA veterinarian, there's no law against slaughtering downer cows for processing.
There could be a law -- Congress brought up just such a strategy in a hearing yesterday with Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer. The suggestion that downer cows should be banned from the food supply altogether (and that security cameras should be installed to ensure compliance) didn't go over well with Schafer, who points out that penalties against Westland-Hallmark have been "strong and swift."
Maybe they have been -- the company is certainly in dire straits at this point -- but the fact that it took the work of a non-profit to get anything done at all is downright embarrassing.
Shafer assures that it's okay. They're going to do more unannounced spot checks now. That ought to solve the problem, right?