Goat and Horse Meat

[Old John]

Hi Y'all,

Now, here's one that's sure to stir up some discussion.
Many years ago, down South I visited these Folks with my Cousins.
They were okay Folks, but kinda different. After dinner we
were told that it had been horse meat roast, that we'd eaten.
We went back a time or two subsequently and had dinner with
them. And, although we never asked, I have a great suspicion
that it was always horse meat that we had eaten. It was as good
as any beef I ever ate.

I have when working in the SouthWest, SC Texas, eaten goat,
or kid, mostly barbecued. It had a similar taste to lamb, I had
eaten on the farm in SE Indiana. Most Hoosiers really dp NOT
like the flavor of lamb. To me it's great, as is kid, young goat,
chevon(?).

Here's the question: How do y'all feel about goat meat, or even
horse meat? Well especially horse meat. Would horses be an optional food source in America? Looks like it is heading that way in certain areas now.

Here is an Article from the USDA about it:
see interesting link below

http://www.igha.org/USDA.html

http://www.igha.org/USDA.html


Partial Text:
"Horse was commonly eaten in many countries in pre-Christian Europe, but not in Islamic or Jewish countries, since under Mosaic Law horse meat is considered unclean because it conformed to the formula of an animal that was not at the same time cloven-hoofed and cud-chewing. In pre-Christian times horse meat eating in northern Europe figured prominently in Teutonic religious ceremonies, particularly those associated with the worship of the god Odin.

In 732 A.D. Pope Gregory III began a concerted effort to stop this pagan practice, and it has been said that the people of Iceland were reluctant to embrace Christianity for some time largely over the issue of giving up horse meat. In some countries the effects of this prohibition by the Catholic Church have lingered, and horse meat prejudices have progressed from taboos to avoidance to abhorrence. Today, however, horse meat is commonly consumed in many European countries."

"Retail cuts of horse are similar to those of beef. The meat is leaner, slightly sweeter in taste, with a flavor somewhat between that of beef and venison. Good horse meat is very tender, but it can also be slightly tougher than comparable cuts of beef. The meat is higher in protein and lower in fat. The meat of animals beyond three years of age is a brilliant vermilion color and has better flavor. The meat of young horses is more tender but lighter in color."

"Although many Americans have an aversion to eating horse meat, the horse meat industry is now rivaling the beef and pork industries in the amounts of fresh meat shipped abroad. In 1994, 109,353 pounds of horse meat was shipped overseas. In Sweden horse meat outsells lamb and mutton combined. It is also commonly consumed in Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands, but it is most popular in Belgium and France."

Glad Yule, Y'All.

[BobBoyce]

Me and DW made a trip to south america about 15 years ago. Horse meat was used in place of beef. As it was explained to us, the terrain was too mountainous for cattle. We found it to be way better than beef.

Bob

[desdawg]

There was and article in "Backwoods Home" a couple of months ago about horsemeat. The next issue was swamped with letters to the editor. Apparently it wasn't a very popular article.

[agmantoo]

I have a friend that deals in horseflesh. He buys horses mostly east of the Mississippi and south of the MasonDixon line. The horses are brought to NC where he has several large pastures to be fattened/conditioned. Some of what he buys look rough but it is surprisingly how fast they respond to good food and care. Once the horses are ready to market he hauls them to either Canada or New Jersey. I am uncertain how they are marketed in Canada but in NJ there is a slaughter facility that processes the horses and the meat is immediately placed in cold storage on a ship where it is aged in transit, going mainly to France. My friend stated that the market for the horse flesh is less volatile than for beef and that his price per pound averages more than beef prices even after discounting for the transportation.

[Beeman]

I've eaten both when I was young. My Dad made sure we had variety in our diet. We also ate eel ,frogs, octopus and squid. I've probably eaten kangaroo also unknowingly as Merkel meat Co. had a scandal about that years ago and we bought meats there.

[southerngurl]

Blech, horse and pig meat are both grody.

[BobBoyce]

Originally Posted by southerngurl

Blech, horse and pig meat are both grody.

Quite the contrary, both are excellent if properly prepared.

Bob

[opus]

Eaten a bit of goat, sold it as well. I like it and found it to be a bit different from lamb. Dont think I have had horse, but would given the chance, heard lots of good things about it. We actually raised horses for the feedlot.

After all, if God didnt want us to eat animals, He wouldnt of made them out of meat.

[RedneckWoman]

I have eaten quite a bit of goat. A friend of mine raises Boers and I will ocassionaly buy one from her for the freezer. I have eaten horse a few times and thought it was pretty good. There is a possibility that I would eat more of it if there was someone here that dealt in horse meat and butchered it. I butcher all of my own stuff and even though I like horse meat I think butchering a horse would give me some sort of Bambi Complex or something.

[moonwolf]

I ate goat once in a Filipino ethnic stew dish. It was fine, and I wouldn't compare it to lamb. I like a good rack of lamb or stew.

I never entertained the thought of eating horsemeat, though it's a good protein source in canned dog foods. I can't see why it wouldn't be a human source of red meat protein, but I also have some aversion problems associated with it. Same with the idea of eating dog or cat. Maybe it's good, but I don't want to know. I can choose other sources of meat, and I'm okay with that. Pork is good, and probably a poor comparison with horse.

A curious question I have for any who have tried both. How would Horsemeat compare to Moose Venison?

[kjerckie]

I wanted to have horse meat a few years ago. I called our local butcher shops for information on cut and wrap. I was NOT recieved well. So I didn't pursue it then. An idea, if you know someone to cuts their own game, might ask them for help. I think most Americans have glamorized the horse as a pet. It has a function, they are great companions, and they are also a source of meat. One day, if the opportunity ever presents itself, I'll try it and let you know

[Thumper/inOkla.]

I don't have a problem with it. I would much rather see the animals go to good use than just be wasted.
If that is what there is to eat I would eat it,

I grew up learning about the hard winter times from my grandmother, can you imagine 6 children to feed, mid winter and taking the last jar of canned food out of the cellar?

I remember the episode of Little House on the Prairy, where Mr. Ingals when out to shoot the horses becuase there was no food for the family, and they where trapped in the mountians in a blizzard, I was sad about it, but even as a child I understood it was how it had to be.

I love horses, but just don't think horses are of greater value than any other form of life.

We have 3 now, one was ill tempered with bad feet, the other two where wild and not worth the cost of feed, (we bought them at rock bottom prices) so we have and are doing our fair share of providing a good home to those our land can support, but there where 5 other young stud colts on their way to auction, left where our wild ones came from.

There aren't enought homes for all of them to be pets and in the wild they serve as food, it's part of their place in the world.

[inc]

in michigan in the 70's it was possible to buy horse meat frozen in blocks. i cant remember anything about the label, it was a colored paper label. i dont know where it came from or what it was sold for but i was told it was for dog food.

[YuccaFlatsRanch]

PETA would go absolutely BONKERS.

[RachAnn in NW Okla]

Hi~

DISCLAIMER: the views expressed are from the websites and may not reflect my opinions.

These sites are probablly VERY bias but here is some info

THE TERRORS OF HORSE SLAUGHTER

Before shipping American horses to slaughter houses in Texas and as far away as Canada, the horses are placed into over-crowded holding pens many times standing in disease infested muck. Often sick, the horses are crammed into double-decked cattle trucks. Without sufficient room to hold their heads upright, they travel for 36 hours through summer heat or brutal winter cold without stopping for rest, food or water.

At the slaughter house, the horse is electrically prodded into the "kill box"to be repeatedly bludgeoned in the skull by a dead-bolt gun with a four-inch nail. Alive, and often conscious, the horse is then shackled by a rear leg, hoisted into the air, its throat slit and body dismembered.

No horse is spared this ordeal. These hungry, dehydrated, fatigued and terrified horses include not only the old, sick, blind and crippled, but the young and healthy, our children's pets, mares with helpless foals standing at their side, and our wild mustangs.

Fact: Widespread use of pharmaceuticals and aminogycoside antibiotics "not prescribed for food animals" renders American horsemeat potentially dangerous to human health.

Fact: Horse meat eating is discouraged by Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist & Hindu religions.

Let's put the American Horse back in the stable ...and off the table!
------------http://www.savethehorses.com/------------

American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (AHSPA)
See actual bill,
HR 857


April 27, 2004, Senate 2352
See the bill, S. 2352, that was introduced in the Senate.


If passed, HR 857 will put an end once and for all to the slaughter of American horses both in the U.S. and in foreign countries.
------------http://www.habitatforhorses.org/------------

As the summer winds down, decisions are expected in the near future regarding the slaughter of horses for human consumption in the United States. On both a state and federal level, the practice has been attacked in recent years.

While federal law currently allows this practice, only two horse slaughter facilities operate in the United States: Beltex Corp., in Fort Worth, Texas, and Dallas Crown Inc., in Kaufman, Texas. The horseflesh is then exported to Canada, Europe, Japan, and elsewhere. The plants say they are offering a service, by providing food that countries want and humanely disposing of animals that have outlived their usefulness. Many U.S. residents, however, are outraged, seeing horses as companion animals, not as food animals.

<---snip--->
One stumbling block for this federal bill, however, is the trade issues that come into play when you consider the North American Free Trade Agreement and World Trade Organization agreements. Currently, a company in Mexico trucks slaughtered horses up to the Texas plants for processing, and this company would be affected. There is also a question of whether you can restrict the exportation of one meat and not another.

Individuals in many countries see horses as food animals and the demand is not likely to go away. "In talking to my counterparts in the European Union, for the near future at least, horsemeat consumption will increase," says Dr. Timothy Cordes, U.S. Department of Agriculture slaughter horse program leader. "This is due to, one, the perception of mad cow disease, and, two, that horsemeat is a healthier alternative with less fat."

----------http://www.avma.org/onlnews/javma/aug03/030815e.asp-----------

Canada is the fourth-largest exporter in the world, according to French meat authority MHR Viandes. France, along with Italy and Japan, consumed well over half of the 13,167 tonnes of horse meat exported by Canada in 2000
---snip---
They attribute it, in large part, to the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, as Europeans abandoned beef in favour of other meats.
----------http://www.cbc.ca/news/features/horse_meat_industry.html----------

The recently passed spending bill is also opening the door for Americans to sell wild horses and burros for meat. Among its provisions is one letting people sell wild horses that could be used as meat in other countries. The law applies to horses more than 10 years old, or younger horses which have been passed over for adoption three times. Posted Dec 09, 2004 - 08:42 AM --------http://www.explodingcigar.com/article1612.html


my goal was to find both sides of the fence...however I am having difficulty finding Americans or their websites that promote horse slaughter for human consumption...(one of my sophomore students recently gave a speech about this very topic and I was shocked at her statistics)

Rachel

[ponyexpress]

aside from the fact that I find eating horsemeat appalling, have you ever considered the drugs that we pump into our horses on a regular basis that specifically state on the label "not to be used in horses that are for human consumption"???

[YuccaFlatsRanch]

Ever notice that Pigs, sheep, goats, and chickens/Turkeys are food and Trigger, Bambi, Rover, and Felix are "pets" or if one insists on being Politically Correct "Companion Animals".

This will make for very interesting political Fodder for the people in Washington who already have way to little to do. I wonder where in the Constitution that the Federal Government is charged with deciding what is and isn't food. You can get in more trouble for killing or mistreating these animals than you can for mistreating (even molesting) human children.

[Tango]

I will not eat an animal that is my companion. therefore I will not eat dogs, cats, or horses. Recently I bonded very closely to a doe going through a rough time after kidding and I decided I would never again eat goat (it is one of my favorite meats). I have a good hunch that if I ever raised a cow, I would give up beef easily- as it is there are several pigs on my place that I am unable to butcher. So far these obstacles haven't cropped up with poultry. Understand these are personal decisions; not political correctness issues. They don't reflect my family or my ethnic background. Someday I would like to hunt deer and try venison.

[fordy]

.............I've never had a problem with eating Beef , pork , chicken , or goat . Although I've only consumed Cabrito about 3 times in my life and liked the flavor very well . Horses , dogs\wolves and Cats are our best friends while we reside on this spaceship while it hurtles through the Cosmos . Horses , have hauled us to battle , pulled our funeral charriots , pulled our plows and covered waggons , and pulled the buggy's down the country lane whilst love was ever growing . Dogs have become our Very best friends and display a level of devotion and affection that is unmatched by our children or our spouses , they save many thousands of lives when we become entombed as a result of earthquakes , mudslides , avalanche(s) and shoddy building collapse(s) so to even consider them as food is a killing offense if I catch anyone trying to hurt my Best friend . Cats , probably are as much loved as Dogs , by us humans . For the longest I was indifferent to cats but thru the years of watching them at a previous friends house I have become convinced that they are as devoted pets to their owners as dogs . They just display their affections in a different manner and symbolism it seems . The one trait that I don't care for is all that screeming during their romantic interludes and their tendency to PEE on the wall . They will always be forgiven so not to worry . fordy..

[caballoviejo]

Oh brother, A federal law prohibiting horse eating?

I've had great goat many times. Had dog once in China, did'nt care for it because it was greasy, perhaps it would have been better if cooked differently.


I'm not familiar with any food prohibitions in Christianity.

Concering food that one finds offensive, I am reminded of the statement said by the character Paul Newman played in the movie "Hombre" concening eating dog:

"You'd eat it, and you'd like it."