The Spin Goes On

Arutz Sheva, Israel's popular news service, has a report on the visit of Iowa Ag Secretary Patty Judge to the Rubashkin slaughterhouse in Postville, Iowa. The report incorrectly states that:

1. The Ag Secretary "changed her mind." According to her office, that is simply not true.
2. That she had originally called for a state investigation of AgriProcessors and had now changed her mind. Again, not true. The State of Iowa has no legal control over AgriProcessors. Because AgriProcessors ships out of state and worldwide, it is under the sole regulatory jurisdiction of the USDA.
3. That Ms. Judge had problems with kosher slaughter and, after seeing AgriProcessors changed her mind. Again, not true. She had no previous problem with kosher slaughter. She had "previous problems" with the slaughter shown on the PETA video.

Further, the Arutz 7 report failed to mention the following key facts:

1. Ms. Judge saw only three cattle slaughtered, apparently under new procedures instituted by the OU and Rubashkin last week. The cattle were killed without throat-ripping and were held in the rotating pen for a longer time to ensure proper bleed-out and to ensure the cattle were insensate when dumped from the pen. It is by no means clear that the slower pace of slaughter Ms. Judge saw will be the new standard, or that the procedures she saw will remain in place.
2. She had a personal tour given by Sholom Mordechai Rubashkin at his personal invitation. It seems that the shochet and other personnel were hand-picked by AgriProcessors.
3. Agriculture is Iowa's largest business.
4. The Iowa Department of Agriculture's chief function is that of a booster for the state's agri-businesses, not as a regulator of them.

And then we have this quote from the OU:

Officials at the Orthodox Union, the world's largest Kashrut-certifying organization, expressed satisfaction at Secretary Judge’s comments. “We are gratified that a personal inspection tour of AgriProcessors by Iowa’s Secretary of Agriculture, Patty Judge, made it clear that kosher slaughter there is done humanely,” declared Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, Executive Vice President of the Orthodox Union, and Rabbi Menachem Genack, Rabbinic Administrator of the OU Kosher division. "Clearly, humane slaughter goes on at the AgriProcessors plant, in conformity with the laws of Torah which make it clear that humanity to animals is a religious requirement in Judaism.”

The official statement of Secretary Judge reads:

(Des Moines, IA)  Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Patty Judge toured the AgriProcessors Plant at Postville on Sunday afternoon.  Secretary Judge was invited by Agriprocessors to tour the facility and to learn more about kosher slaughter of cattle.  The Secretary’s visit was strictly as a guest, and not as a regulator.  Plant officials extended the invitation and because she had not previously had an opportunity to visit the Postville facility, she was glad to accept the invitation.

The Iowa Department of Agriculture has no legal authority to inspect or regulate the Postville plant. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) holds the federal grant of inspection on the Postville plant and is in charge of all regulatory matters pertaining to it.

The USDA is conducting a thorough investigation of the plant and they alone will make a determination as to what, if any, action is taken.

You can read Arutz 7's report here or after the jump.

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=73580
Agriculture Secretary OK's Kosher Slaughter
14:10 Dec 14, '04 / 2 Tevet 5765

   

“What I saw today was humane," said Iowa's Sec'y of Agriculture, after a tour of a large kosher slaughterhouse on Sunday. She had originally said she was "disturbed" by kosher slaughter practices.

"It was quick and there was absolutely no problem with the way [the cattle] were handled," said Secretary Patty Judge after touring the AgriProcessors plant on Sunday. Ms. Judge toured the processing plant after PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) released a videotape showing animals in distress following slaughter. She had originally said that she was "disturbed" by the video, and called for a possible state investigation. She changed her mind, however, during her visit to the the world's largest supplier of glatt (extra-stringent) kosher meat products. Officials at the Orthodox Union, the world's largest Kashrut-certifying organization, expressed satisfaction at Secretary Judge’s comments. “We are gratified that a personal inspection tour of AgriProcessors by Iowa’s Secretary of Agriculture, Patty Judge, made it clear that kosher slaughter there is done humanely,” declared Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, Executive Vice President of the Orthodox Union, and Rabbi Menachem Genack, Rabbinic Administrator of the OU Kosher division. "Clearly, humane slaughter goes on at the AgriProcessors plant, in conformity with the laws of Torah which make it clear that humanity to animals is a religious requirement in Judaism.” In a statement issued several days earlier, Rabbis Weinreb and Genack declared: “After carefully studying the [PETA] video, Rabbi Menachem Genack and Rabbi Yisroel Belsky, one of the OU’s distinguished poskim (rabbinic decisors), traveled to Postville, Iowa to review the procedures at the AgriProcessors plant. They found that these procedures meet all OU standards to the highest degree, and that the shochtim (rabbinic slaughters) are all highly proficient, skilled and knowledgeable. Nevertheless, the OU and AgriProcessors, Inc. have worked together to make certain changes, namely that the trachea will no longer be removed following shechita (kosher slaughter), and that any animals that appear to have survived the procedure will be promptly stunned or shot.” “This was the first time I had an opportunity to see kosher slaughter," Secretary Judge said. "I was glad to see how it works." She said she saw three cattle slaughtered, and that they were rendered insensible and unconscious within “two or three seconds” after the shochet's cut. “Slaughter is never pleasant, but it was humane, quick, and I have no problem with the way those animals were being treated," Secretary Judge said. "The rabbis slaughtering the chickens were much more gentle than my grandmother was on our farm when I was a child." "If done correctly under kosher law, the technique ensures quick and painless death," according to officials quoted in the Des Moines Register, an Iowa newspaper. Information on kosher slaughter can be found here.

Published: 13:51 December 14, 2004 Last Update: 14:10 December 14, 2004