Australian racehorses Killed For Meat In South Korea
The brother of the Australian racing legend Winx is one of thousands of exported thoroughbreds killed for meat in Korea under conditions the RSPCA has called “very distressing”.
Footage filmed secretly at the Nonghyup abattoir in South Korea last year shows horses being repeatedly beaten on the head with lengths of black polyethylene pipe in an attempt to herd them into the facility.
That treatment would be in breach both of Australian animal welfare laws and of the requirements imposed on abattoirs that process live export animals if it was part of a formal Australian supply chain, the RSPCA said.
But because the horses were exported to race or breed, rather than for slaughter, and because horses are not classified as livestock in Australia, they are outside the protection of laws that govern the live export industry.
In the past five years Australia has exported 158 racehorses to South Korea, mostly two-year-olds purchased in the Magic Millions sales for the purpose of racing or breeding. Analysis of a single year, 2014, shows that of 58 horses exported, 12 were confirmed to have been slaughtered and a further 11 were also likely to have been used in the meat trade.
The Greens and animal welfare group have called on Australian racing authorities to halt exports until conditions in the slaughterhouse meet Australian standards.
But the Australian government says responsibility for the horses is out of its hands.
Winx was retired in April after a 33-race winning streak that made her one of the most feted horses in Australian racing history. The Australian prime minister, Scott Morrison, presented a copy of her best-selling biography to the Queen on Monday.
Credit: The Guardian Newspaper