Interesting and thoughtful commentary on downer cows on Marlerblog

Marlerblog featured two posts this week giving a broader perspective on downer cows.  Both pieces give clear and useful background information with links to sources:

Should ALL Downers be banned from the food supply? (posted 3/2/08)

I  am thinking about the reasons, ethically, medically and financially why we allow "downer" cattle into our food supply - at any level.  Over the next few days I will give you my thoughts.  Please feel free to weigh in. 

To put things in context, The USDA suggested, and Westland/Hallmark issued, the largest beef recall in history (143 million pounds of meat and now recalls have been issued for retail food items containing traces of the banned beef) just a few weeks ago. This all after the Humane Society released undercover video showing workers at Westland/Hallmark shoving sick or crippled cows (a.k.a. “downers”) with forklifts to get them to stand. So, what is a “downer?”

and

The Raw Economics Driving the Use of Downers (posted 3/4/08)

This is the land of capitalism.  So, we all know that when it comes to using Downers, or non-ambulatory cows, there has to be that raw underbelly of profit or, perhaps more accurately, the illusion of profits.  Let’s examine if the use of downers makes good economic sense.

First some background: In the U.S., we both import and export slaughtered beef and dairy cattle. According to USA Today, some 35 million U.S. cattle are slaughtered each year in the U.S.  According to a recent report by JAVMA, the exact number of nonambulatory cattle on US farms or feedlots or sent to slaughter facilities is difficult to ascertain. However, estimates may approach 500,000 animals per year according to a recent

Both posts are available on MarlerBlog: www.marlerblog.com