WASHINGTON — He came to the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing Wednesday armed with a four-page statement and three positive audits of his slaughterhouse.
But when it was Steve Mendell’s turn to testify, he could only watch and wince as the panel rolled the video. Cows at his Southern California plant were shown being prodded and jammed with forklifts, falling to the ground and being yanked back up so they could be dragged to slaughter — a violation of federal rules.
The president of Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. paused, then acknowledged under questioning from lawmakers that, contrary to the statement he’d delivered under oath, it appeared that downed cattle at his plant had entered the nation’s food supply. Asked about the discrepancy, Mendell said, “I had not seen what I saw here today.”
He said the Agriculture Department had not shared with him some of the undercover video shot by the Humane Society of the United States.
The Associated Press
