'Slaughtered for raw consumption': Why is Edmonton a horse-meat hub?
Over the past decade, thousands of horses have been placed in crates and shipped out of Edmonton International Airport. Their final destination is Japan, where they are slaughtered. Their meat is mainly used in high-end dishes, the stuff of culinary blogs and Instagram posts.
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It's an industry that goes along quietly, despite the efforts of animal-rights activists to drag the practice into the light. A federal bill to ban the export-by-air of horses passed through parliament while Justin Trudeau was prime minister, but didn't get past the senate before the 2025 federal election reset the legislative calendar.
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April 14 was just another day in the horse-export trade. Ninety-nine Belgian Crosses were placed three to a crate and prepped for loading onto Korean Air Flight 9214, a Boeing 747-8 making a routine cargo run from Edmonton International Airport to Kitakyushu, Japan, with a refueling stop in Alaska.
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But one crate had a problem; one of the horses was down. A Canadian Food Inspection Agency report stated that the horse had water poured on it and was prodded in efforts by handlers to get it to stand up. Workers debated whether or not to use an electric prod, but decided against it. After 50 minutes, they gave up and the crate was pulled. Only 96 horses made the trip. The CFIA stated that the treatment of the horse was 'unacceptable.'
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Four hours after the Alaska layover, with the plane somewhere over the Pacific, another horse went down and wouldn't get up. Checks were made every half-hour. A hard landing in Japan caused four more horses to topple over.
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The length of the journey from the Alberta feedlot to Japan's quarantine area was 28.91 hours. Under Canadian regulations, the longest a horse in transit can go without food, water or rest is 28 hours. The CFIA report states that the agency did not receive a transfer-of-care document.
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The CFIA's red-flag-filled report led Animal Justice, a national animal-welfare advocacy group, to launch a legal complaint and alert the Alberta SPCA.
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'When people I talk to find out about this, they are shocked and appalled,' said Schwarz. 'Canadians have a special relationship with horses.'
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Calgary Herald
a day ago
- Calgary Herald
'Slaughtered for raw consumption': Why is Edmonton a horse-meat hub?
Article content Over the past decade, thousands of horses have been placed in crates and shipped out of Edmonton International Airport. Their final destination is Japan, where they are slaughtered. Their meat is mainly used in high-end dishes, the stuff of culinary blogs and Instagram posts. Article content It's an industry that goes along quietly, despite the efforts of animal-rights activists to drag the practice into the light. A federal bill to ban the export-by-air of horses passed through parliament while Justin Trudeau was prime minister, but didn't get past the senate before the 2025 federal election reset the legislative calendar. Article content Article content Article content April 14 was just another day in the horse-export trade. Ninety-nine Belgian Crosses were placed three to a crate and prepped for loading onto Korean Air Flight 9214, a Boeing 747-8 making a routine cargo run from Edmonton International Airport to Kitakyushu, Japan, with a refueling stop in Alaska. Article content Article content But one crate had a problem; one of the horses was down. A Canadian Food Inspection Agency report stated that the horse had water poured on it and was prodded in efforts by handlers to get it to stand up. Workers debated whether or not to use an electric prod, but decided against it. After 50 minutes, they gave up and the crate was pulled. Only 96 horses made the trip. The CFIA stated that the treatment of the horse was 'unacceptable.' Article content Four hours after the Alaska layover, with the plane somewhere over the Pacific, another horse went down and wouldn't get up. Checks were made every half-hour. A hard landing in Japan caused four more horses to topple over. Article content Article content The length of the journey from the Alberta feedlot to Japan's quarantine area was 28.91 hours. Under Canadian regulations, the longest a horse in transit can go without food, water or rest is 28 hours. The CFIA report states that the agency did not receive a transfer-of-care document. Article content Article content The CFIA's red-flag-filled report led Animal Justice, a national animal-welfare advocacy group, to launch a legal complaint and alert the Alberta SPCA. Article content 'When people I talk to find out about this, they are shocked and appalled,' said Schwarz. 'Canadians have a special relationship with horses.'
CBC
a day ago
- CBC
'From wedding bands to urns': Samaritan's Purse Canada helps Denare Beach residents recover possessions
A humanitarian aid group has arrived in Denare Beach to provide residents assistance in the recovery of possessions lost to wildfires. 218 permanent residences were destroyed by wildfire last month, when the Wolf Fire tore through the northern village June 2, and forced hundreds of residents to flee. Three weeks later, residents returned back to a community that was unrecognizable to them — filled with ashes, charred frames and memories lost. "We worked hard to get connected with them. They had lots of issues with phones being down, power lines were out," said Tammy Suitor, Canadian Disaster Relief Manager for Samaritan's Purse. "Once we did, it was a quick, 'can you please come?'" Samaritan's Purse announced earlier this month, it would be deploying team members to the community to manage operations and lead volunteers. Thirty-five volunteers embarked on a two-day trek from the group's base in Alberta and arrived at Denare Beach where they set up camp July 11. "Our goal is to always go in and be totally self-sufficient," Suitor said. "We don't want to draw on, you know, resources that the community needs." Normally, volunteers would stay at a local church and turn classrooms into overnight rooms where they could eat and sleep, she said. In this case, Suitor says the community did not have the capacity to house people, so they built a camp "from the ground up." The group set up a number of Alaska tents in a field and brought nearly 20 pieces of equipment including RVs, a cook-kitchen, generators and a two-level trailer to use during their stay. "Everything we need is in those trailers," Suitor said. "Whether it's PPE gear for our staff and our volunteers, whether it's equipment like chainsaws, sifts, shovels, pumps." Hunting through the ash Andy Northup, the program manager for Samaritan's Purse says they have received around 80 search requests since their arrival — and have 35 left to complete. For each request, he says a homeowner will accompany volunteers to their property, tell them what to look for and where to look. "Then they're going in there literally with the sifters and shovels and going through the ash looking for things," Northup said. Volunteers could be asked to search for "anything from wedding bands to urns." Even in instances where they don't necessarily find what the homeowner is looking for, Northup says they will try to bring back something tangible — like a teacup or tea set — because it still holds value. "People were able to go forward with that," he said. "That's something that survived the fire." Northup says in most cases volunteers have been able to find items in the ashes, which is important to a person's recovery. Residents need to have the time and space to share their stories and the stories behind the items found, he said. "Just to be able to use the word 'celebrate' lightly with the family, just to stand with the family," said Northup. "Even if it's [the item] not good anymore, it allows the family to talk about things." Suitor says many times the items that wouldn't be considered important before a disaster, become extremely important after one. She points to early in their stay, when a group of volunteers were helping a homeowner look around their property. "There was a little angel, a porcelain Angel, and a wing had broken off in the fire…. but we found both pieces," Suitor said. "The homeowner's like 'My grandma gave me that when I was a little girl and she was my favourite person in the world and I forgot that I even had that.'" More recently, she says another group of volunteers were at a homeowners house and they weren't having much luck in their search that day. Suitor says the team lead had asked everyone to wrap up for the day, and two of the volunteers had pretended they didn't hear him so they could do a few more shovels. "It was in those last two shovels of the day that they found the wedding rings, the necklaces and the coins and the stuff that these homeowners were looking for," she said. "The homeowner starts to cry and was just so thankful and just melted into the arms of our team lead. And that's what we're there for. It's not for us, it's not about the work, it's about the people." Recovering from disaster Emergency management teams are learning more about long-term recovery and how people recover from disasters as it continues to develop and grow, Suitor said. She says it used to be believed that once a community was cleaned, the residents within it moved on from the disaster. Instead, Suitor says many of them "get stuck." "They don't know how to move forward," she said. Now the group provides a long-term recovery program so people don't fall through the cracks. "People need to feel seen," Suitor said. "They need to feel heard and that they can tell their story about what happened." She says the other "important part of recovery" is giving people back their control — especially in instances where they've had to evacuate. "Your house floods or your house burns down or trees go through your roof or whatever that looks like…. you are out of control of all of that," Suitor said. That's the reason why the volunteers work alongside the homeowners in the recovery of their possessions. "It gives [them] control back to say, I can make these decisions," Suitor said.
Cision Canada
2 days ago
- Cision Canada
Canadian Coast Guard welcomes the CCGS Baie des Chaleurs into service Français
DARTMOUTH, NS, July 30, 2025 /CNW/ - The Canadian Coast Guard plays an essential role in ensuring the safety of mariners and protection of Canada's marine environment. Through the National Shipbuilding Strategy, the Government of Canada has made it a priority to ensure Canada has the vessels we need to continue to deliver these critical services to Canadians. Today, the Canadian Coast Guard officially welcomed CCGS Baie des Chaleurs to its fleet at the Lifeboat Station in Clark's Harbour, Nova Scotia. Jessica Fancy, Member of Parliament for South Shore–St. Margarets, alongside vessel sponsor Rosemarie Patricia LeBlanc, the crew and community members, participated in the traditional breaking of a ceremonial bottle upon the ship's bow. The CCGS Baie des Chaleurs is one of 20 new search and rescue lifeboats that will be dedicated into service by the Canadian Coast Guard across the country. The lifeboats are specifically designed, equipped, and crewed to respond to search and rescue incidents at sea. They can operate up to 100 nautical miles from shore, maintain a maximum 30 minute state-of-readiness, and are typically ready to respond the moment an alert is received. The new search and rescue vessels are being stationed across Canada to provide key search and rescue services including searches on the water, response to marine distress calls, as well as assistance to disabled vessels. So far, 13 of the lifeboats have been delivered to Coast Guard stations on the Atlantic coast. Quotes "I am pleased to welcome the CCGS Baie des Chaleurs into service. This investment under the National Shipbuilding Strategy will ensure that search and rescue crews have state-of-the-art equipment that allows them to safely, effectively, and efficiently serve Canadians." The Honourable Joanne Thompson, Minister of Fisheries "Welcoming the CCGS Baie des Chaleurs is a proud moment for our coastal communities and a vital step forward in protecting our waters and those who depend on them. This vessel is a symbol of our deep connection to the sea and our ongoing commitment to keeping our waters safe for generations to come." Jessica Fancy, Member of Parliament for South Shore–St. Margarets "I congratulate the Canadian Coast Guard on the commissioning of its 16th new search and rescue boat. We are proud to support the construction of these Bay-class vessels under the National Shipbuilding Strategy, enabling Coast Guard personnel to provide maritime assistance and keep our waters safe. This milestone is another step in building a Canada strong investing in our maritime sovereignty, supporting Canadian jobs, and reinforcing our shipbuilding expertise from coast to coast to coast." The Honourable Joël Lightbound, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement Quick Facts The CCGS Baie des Chaleurs is classed as a search and rescue lifeboat, with a top speed up to 25 knots, and has a crew of four. The CCGS Baie des Chaleurs will operate throughout the Atlantic coast as required until the new Grand Passage Lifeboat Station and wharf are complete. It is estimated this work will be completed in 2027. The vessel's home port will be at the new Lifeboat Station and wharf being built in Grand Passage, N.S. to replace the Westport location. The lifeboats are informally referred to as "Bay Class" as each vessel is named after a Canadian bay. These shore-stationed self-righting lifeboats were built to provide key search and rescue services, including: conducting searches on water responding to marine distress calls providing assistance to disabled vessels operating up to 100 nautical miles from shore replacing the Canadian Coast Guard's existing search and rescue vessels Each year, the Canadian Coast Guard responds to over 6,500 calls for marine assistance. On an average day, they coordinate the response to 18 search and rescue incidents, assist 47 people and save 13 lives. Associated Links Search and Rescue Lifeboats National Shipbuilding Strategy The Canadian Coast Guard at 60 Start your career with the Canadian Coast Guard Stay Connected SOURCE Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Canada
