The Imperial Dominion of the South's Legislature

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Am I up for reelection??

[Donerail]

Am I up for reelection??

Naw, it's Jbrase and Adam Griffin.

[CatoMinor]

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May I ask why? Horse meat (not that I have ever had it) is a legit food.

[Donerail]

May I ask why? Horse meat (not that I have ever had it) is a legit food.

Due to horse meat not being a traditional part of the food chain, you commonly find drugs in the meat that aren't legal for use in food animals (such as cows), but since horses typically aren't considered a food, these drugs appear. Plus, the slaughter pipeline in Atlasia is typically less regulated than that for other animals such as cows, so abuse and inhumane treatment is much more common. The vast majority of groups affiliated with the horse industry are opposed to horse slaughter as well.

Besides, this law wouldn't ban the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation of horse meat, just of the horses themselves.

[HagridOfTheDeep]

In that instance, wouldn't it be more preferable to actually have domestic horse slaughterhouses? If this bill does not effectively stop the trade of horse meat, why not just allow farms to operate in our region and let the free market decide whether or not they are successful? If the industry can be sustained regionally, there'd be jobs in it for at least a few hundred people.

What's interesting is that the 2007 ban in America actually saw thousands of horses being abandonned and mistreated because there was no use for them (see here). Since I don't think there are currently any Atlasian laws on the books regarding horse slaughter (I could be wrong), who is to say that similar unintended circumstances would not occur here in the IDS?

I would be in support of enforcing drug standards for "agri-horses" similar to the standards for cows. Perhaps we could create an "Agri Meats Regulatory Board" to ensure these standards are met. Regardless, I am not sold on the proposed ban.

[Associate Justice PiT]

     I had the same thoughts as Hagrid. Allow slaughter trade in horses if they can be held to the same standard as that for other animals.  I'll say that there are also certain traditional uses for horse meat, and I think allowing people to kill for food only wild horses or horses they already own is unnecessarily restrictive.

[CatoMinor]

I am in agreement with PiT and Hagrid here

[Adam Griffin]

Are there any laws on the IDS books regulating the pharmaceuticals, hormones and other additives that can be fed to any animals meant for consumption? I'm not aware of any. This could be a chance to expand the quality of all consumable meats. If there was any way to get a cost benefit analysis or estimates for any additional costs to livestock owners, we could even evaluate an "organic" approach for all livestock. This could, however, be complicated due to the food supply chain.

[Donerail]

Are there any laws on the IDS books regulating the pharmaceuticals, hormones and other additives that can be fed to any animals meant for consumption? I'm not aware of any. This could be a chance to expand the quality of all consumable meats. If there was any way to get a cost benefit analysis or estimates for any additional costs to livestock owners, we could even evaluate an "organic" approach for all livestock. This could, however, be complicated due to the food supply chain.

I don't think we have any laws on what we can and cannot feed animals, which is why this issue comes up. If y'all wanna change it to actually create some standards on what you can feed animals, I'd be for that too.

[Adam Griffin]

Are there any laws on the IDS books regulating the pharmaceuticals, hormones and other additives that can be fed to any animals meant for consumption? I'm not aware of any. This could be a chance to expand the quality of all consumable meats. If there was any way to get a cost benefit analysis or estimates for any additional costs to livestock owners, we could even evaluate an "organic" approach for all livestock. This could, however, be complicated due to the food supply chain.

I don't think we have any laws on what we can and cannot feed animals, which is why this issue comes up. If y'all wanna change it to actually create some standards on what you can feed animals, I'd be for that too.

I personally think that it is disgusting to eat such a noble and sentient creature and do like this bill. With no other laws on the books dictating consumption/production regulations and some opposition to halving up horses, however, it may need to be tailored to encompass more.

*can't believe somebody hasn't made a joke yet about horses and nay*

[Adam Griffin]

I've done some preliminary research on the cost of ownership for horses - if we can get the discussion going again, I'll be more inclined to do some industry-wise research. The average cost of ownership per horse is as follows:

Pasture-raised: $2,719
Confined: $2,025

Within these numbers, the average cost of feeding horses is:

Pasture-raised: $404
Confined: $1,184

As we can see, there is a huge discrepancy in the cost of feeding pasture-raised horses and confined horses (20% for pasture-raised, 43% for confined).

An aggregate of several organic websites and suppliers I reviewed had a fairly consistent market quote of the price difference between organic and non-organic: roughly 20% more for organic. However, I did find many examples where there was no difference in the cost of organic versus non-organic (oats, corn, hog feed).

This study also highlights the nutritional benefits of organic food:

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I also saw some reports claiming a 25% higher rate of nutrients on average in organic feed when compared to convention feed, which if true, would actually equate to a net cost decrease.

[CatoMinor]

Hmm, perhaps we could just have a list of things that cannot be put in horses if they are to be allowed to be consumed by humans.

[HagridOfTheDeep]

Those were my thoughts, too. A general "Meat Standards" Act.

[Associate Justice PiT]

     I think that would be best.

[Adam Griffin]

I'll submit a list for review and expansion, with the reasons why they are listed:

No control over quality or contamination:

Animal Fat
Beef Tallow
Lard
Poultry Fat
Vegetable Oil
Animal Digest
Digest, Flavor
Glandular Meal

Inexpensive by-products with no real nutritional value:

Corn Gluten
Wheat Gluten
Brewers Rice
Cereal Food Fines
Feeding Oat Meal
Grain Fermentation Solubles
Maltodextrins & Fermentation Solubles
Potato Product
Soy Flour
Apple Pomace
Citrus Pulp
Grape Pomace
Cellulose
Corn Bran
Corn Cellulose
Oat Hulls
Peanut Hulls
Rice Hulls
Soybean Mill Run
Wheat Mill Run

Linked to many serious health issues:

Blue 2
Red 40
Yellow 5
Yellow 6
Titanium Dioxide
BHA
BHT
Ethoxyquin
Propyl Gallate
Menadione Sodium Bisulfate (Vitamin K3, Synthetic Vitamin K)

Not suitable for human consumption:

Beef & Bone Meal
Blood Meal
Chicken Byproduct Meal
Corn Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles
Corn Germ Meal
Corn Gluten Meal
Fish Meal
Liver Meal
Meat & Bone Meal
Meat Meal
Pork & Bone Meal
Poultry Byproduct Meal
Poultry Meal
Soybean Meal

Fillers:

Cane Molasses
Corn Syrup
Fructose
Sorbitol
Sugar
DI-Alpha Tocopherol Acetate

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

I'll come out and say I know nothing about the slaughtering laws or horse meat, only that lions eat it sometimes in zoos and it's gross. I also like horses a lot, I think they are one of the most elegant creatures on earth, so I don't want to see them getting slaughtered, but I will admit I haven't read most of the arguments because I have not had time to read it over all my other legal readings I do each night. I do hope someone makes a tl;dr version for me before final vote

[CatoMinor]

Duke, the short version is:

Eating horses that have not had the same regulation other meats have is no bueno. So we are debating if we should just have a list of things that cannot go into a horse if it is to be sold as food.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Duke, the short version is:

Eating horses that have not had the same regulation other meats have is no bueno. So we are debating if we should just have a list of things that cannot go into a horse if it is to be sold as food.

Is it legal to eat horse meat? I have never seen it for sale anywhere, so I thought it was illegal for humans to buy and eat, but if it isn't then we do need regulations in place at the very least.

[HagridOfTheDeep]

It was illegal in the US after a ban in 2007, but I believe it's since been overturned. One of the concerns re: banning horse slaughterhouses involved the fact that horses were being mistreated. Unfortunately, the ban actually led to more animal abuse because many of the animals were left to starve and fend for themselves after the ban.

Since there are no laws on the books about horse meat in Atlasia, I think it's fair to assume that there's at least some current economic activity in this industry.

[CatoMinor]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3nA2zqeX5Q

Duke. Brace your self

[Adam Griffin]

I've introduced a livestock feed quality control measure in the legislation thread, seeing as how we have moved away from the original intent of the proposed bill in recent discussion.

[Donerail]

I propose the following amendment to the current bill.

Strike the current text and replace with:

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[CatoMinor]

So stricken and replaced.

I can dig this.

[Associate Justice PiT]

     But I love blood meal!

     Seriously though, this looks good. I don't know how much expertise there is on the subject in this chamber, though. We just do the best that we can.

[Adam Griffin]

     But I love blood meal!

     Seriously though, this looks good. I don't know how much expertise there is on the subject in this chamber, though. We just do the best that we can.

I am sure there may be other ingredients that could be added, but as you stated, none of us are experts. As the resident communal agri-commie Darth, however, I figured I would take the lead on rounding this into something that can be a base for future improvements.