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Meat Company Chief Admits Sick Cows Were Slaughtered

He backtracks after watching second video

By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff

Posted Mar 12, 2008 3:51 PM CDT
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(Newser) – The president of the California slaughterhouse caught up in a scandal over the abuse of cattle admitted to Congress today that sick cows from his plant entered the food supply, the Los Angeles Times reports. He backtracked from an earlier denial after a House panel made him watch a second undercover video. "Obviously my system broke down," said Steve Mendell of Westland/Hallmark Meat.

In earlier written testimony, Mendell acknowledged that a widely circulated video from the Humane Society showed his workers mistreating downer cows, using electric prods and a forklift, but he said those cows were euthanized and not processed for sale. After watching the second video, Mendell had to admit that at least two sick cows entered the slaughterhouse. "My company is ruined," he said.

Pallets of USDA-recalled frozen beef are pushed by a bulldozer into the Los Angeles County Sanitation Landfill in La Puente, Calif. on Wednesday, March 5, 2008. The pallets are among the 156,500 pounds of USDA manufactured products that contained contaminated beef from Hallmark/Westland Meat Company that were delivered to...
Pallets of USDA-recalled frozen beef are pushed by a bulldozer into the Los Angeles County Sanitation Landfill in La Puente, Calif. on Wednesday, March 5, 2008. The pallets are among the 156,500 pounds...   (Associated Press)
Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve Mendell testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008, before the House Oversight and Investigations subcommittee hearing on federal regulations for food and food safety. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve Mendell testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008, before the House Oversight and Investigations subcommittee hearing on federal regulations...   (Associated Press)
Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve Mendell, right, accompanied by his attorney Asa Hutchinson, left, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008, before the House Oversight and Investigations subcommittee hearing on federal regulations for food and food safety. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve Mendell, right, accompanied by his attorney Asa Hutchinson, left, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008, before the House Oversight...   (Associated Press)
Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve Mendell, talks with his wife Carol on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008, prior to testifying before the House Oversight and Investigations subcommittee hearing on federal regulations for food and food safety. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve Mendell, talks with his wife Carol on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008, prior to testifying before the House Oversight and Investigations...   (Associated Press)
Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve Mendell, right, is sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008, prior to testifying before the House Oversight and Investigations subcommittee hearing on federal regulations for food and food safety. His Attorney Asa Hutchinson is at left (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve Mendell, right, is sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008, prior to testifying before the House Oversight and Investigations subcommittee...   (Associated Press)
A pallet of USDA-recalled frozen beef, right, is seen at the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Stores and Foods Warehouse in Pico Rivera, Calif. on Wednesday, March 5, 2008 as a worker transports other products in the facility. The pallet is among the 156,500 pounds of USDA manufactured...
A pallet of USDA-recalled frozen beef, right, is seen at the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Stores and Foods Warehouse in Pico Rivera, Calif. on Wednesday, March 5, 2008 as a worker transports...   (Associated Press)
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COMMENTS
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Failure in oversight led to Hallmark's ruin
Wall Street Journal

Hallmark had been cited for abuse before HSA video
Orange County Register

The sickening spread of tainted beef
Seattle Times

Science • US

 
animal cruelty • cows • USDA • Humane Society • House Energy and Commerce Committee • beef recall • Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. • beef industry

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