Is New Jersey Home to the Last Horse Slaughterhouse in the U.S.?

Penns Grove, New Jersey - Is New Jersey home to the last horse slaughterhouse in the United States? Experts suggest this might be the case. According to the ASPCA, the last horse slaughterhouses in the U.S. shut down in 2007, but Joe Merola, owner of Bravo Packing Incorporated, claims horses are still being killed for their meat at his Penn’s Grove, New Jersey facility.

In 2012, Governor Christie signed a state law banning horse slaughter for human consumption in the Garden State. Mr. Merola states that the horse meat produced at Bravo is sold exclusively to zoos to feed big cats and other carnivores. He declined an on-camera interview but insists he is doing nothing wrong at his company.

However, some animal advocates believe Bravo is exploiting a loophole in the ban by allowing the slaughter of horses to feed animals rather than humans.

Controversy and Advocacy

Amanda Sorvino, daughter of Hollywood actor Paul Sorvino, has spoken out against this controversial practice of horse slaughter for animal consumption in New Jersey.

“New Jersey is home to just about the only horse slaughterhouse left in America. It slaughters horses for zoo consumption, not for human consumption, but obviously the horses don’t know the difference, they’re still getting slaughtered,” she explained.

Sorvino claims to have witnessed the operations at Bravo firsthand. In 2008, she befriended Joe Merola’s late son, Monty Merola, who worked at the meat-packing plant. Over several months, she recorded an undercover video showing rail-thin horses at Bravo on their way to slaughter. She argues that slaughtering horses is simply wrong.

“Horses are pets. They’re also sports animals, they helped to found this country, they’re cultural icons. People wouldn’t do this to their pet dog, would they? It’s completely unacceptable, so why would we do that to our horse?” she asked.

Joe Merola counters that Sorvino’s video omits the care he provides to the horses in their final days, including a big fresh bale of hay.

The Bigger Picture

Regardless of who you believe, is this really the last horse slaughterhouse of any kind in the entire United States?

Representatives from the Monmouth County SPCA, the U.S. ASPCA, the Humane Society, and the U.S. Equine Federation state that the practice of slaughtering horses in the U.S. is very rare or even non-existent today.

However, Chris Hyde, Deputy Director of Government and Legal Affairs for the Animal Welfare Institute in Washington D.C., asserts that Bravo, right here in New Jersey, is the only company he knows by name that is definitely slaughtering horses today in the United States.

What Happens to Unwanted Horses?

This situation raises the question: what do average horse owners do when a horse reaches its later years and can’t handle a rider? Animal advocates say most lame or unwanted horses in the U.S. are humanely euthanized, but some, including over 140,000 last year alone, are shipped out of the country to Canada or Mexico, where there are fewer regulations on slaughter.

Originally Posted By My 9 NJ