Advocates call for end to ‘shocking’ export of live horses to Japan for meat
An investigation found most of the horse shipments from Canada to Japan exceed the legal 28-hour limit on how long horses can go without being given food, water and rest.
Horses shipped from Canada to Japan to meet the demand for horse meat are being forced to endure long-haul flights of more than 28 hours without food or water, according to a new investigation.
Under Canadian regulations, the journey cannot stretch past 28 hours. However, an expose by Canadian nonprofit Animal Justice and Japanese animal protection group Life Investigation Agency (LIA) reveals that exporters frequently exceed the federally mandated time limit.
In light of the findings, animal advocates are calling on the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to halt all horse exports until those involved can guarantee that all shipments will comply with the law.
"The footage from Japan is heartbreaking and shows that the situation is way worse than we ever expected," said Kaitlyn Mitchell, director of legal advocacy at Animal Justice.
"These horses are clearly exhausted and desperately thirsty. I was shocked that they are forced to wait up to six and a half more hours after landing before they can eat, drink and rest."
Between May and June of 2024, LIA tracked four separate shipments of horses exported for slaughter from Edmonton in Canada to Kansai and Kitakyushu airports in Japan, marking the first time this journey has been documented from start to finish.
The horses' grueling journey started in an Albertan feedlot before they were transported to Edmonton International Airport and forced to wait inside crates for hours, according to the investigation. The animals were then flown to Alaska before being sent overseas to Japan.
Footage shows that after the planes touched down in Japan, the exhausted horses were slowly unloaded, with some waiting for more than four hours before they were trucked to a quarantine facility 30 minutes to one hour away, where they could finally eat, drink, and rest.
Flight path for Korean Air flight 9214 as it left Edmonton, stopped in Anchorage, Alaska, and landed at the Kitakyushu airport in Japan. Credit: Animal Justice
Animal Justice reports that in all four documented shipments, most, if not all, exceeded the 28-hour legal limit, highlighting serious issues with the official time records kept by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, which only account for the horses' journey until they arrive in Japan.
"All the horses that arrived in Japan seemed frightened and some were injured," said Ren Yabuki, co-founder and director of Life Investigation Agency.
"Once arrived at the quarantine facility, horses were sprayed with disinfectant, and some of them were confused, frightened, trembling, and refused to get off the truck," Yabuki wrote.
Facility staff holding metal bars shouted at horses to move them out of the trucks, according to Yabuki.
"Some of the horses looked dazed and looked like they might collapse at any moment."
All shipments from Winnipeg to Kitakyushu and Kansai airports over the last seven months appear to have gone over the 28-hour limit, as did 60 percent of shipments leaving Edmonton, says Animal Justice. Their report is based on the video investigation, as well as an analysis of government records obtained by the Canadian Horse Defence Coalition.
“We have so few laws in Canada to protect horses exported for slaughter. Enforcing those laws is the least we can do for these gentle animals,” said Kaitlyn Mitchell, director of legal advocacy at Animal Justice. “This new investigation appears to demonstrate a clear pattern of regulations being flagrantly ignored.
“We are urging the CFIA to look into this troubling situation and to halt all horse exports for slaughter until the industry can guarantee that the shipments will comply with Canadian animal transport laws.”
Thousands of horses are exported from Canada to Japan every year where they are fattened, slaughtered, and eaten as a raw delicacy. 2,513 horses were exported for this purpose in 2023 government data shows.
Bill C-355, which would ban the air export of Canadian horses for slaughter, cleared the House of Commons earlier this year and is now in the hands of the Senate.
What about horses in the US?
In the United States, horses are not consumed as meat nor slaughtered domestically, yet the practice of exporting live horses for slaughter abroad continues due to legal loopholes.
These horses are shipped to Mexico and Canada, where they are killed for meat that is exported to Japan and Europe. 2023 saw more than 20,000 horses sent across US borders to be killed for their meat.
Tracks Investigations, recently conducted their fourth investigation into Canada’s largest horse slaughter plant. Gem explains what happens to these US horses once they arrive in Canada. It’s worse than you can imagine. Please listen and share.
This spring, a bipartisan group of senators reintroduced Senate Bill 2037 Save America’s Forgotten Equines Act to end this industry once and for all. Please join Species Unite in ramping up support for this bill by urging Congress to pass the SAFE act.
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