ST. LOUIS (AP) -- A northwest Missouri horse slaughter plant is preparing to open for business Monday as a legal battle that stretches across the country continues to unfold.
A federal judge in New Mexico last week cleared the way for equine slaughterhouses to resume operating in the U.S., dismissing a lawsuit by the Humane Society of the United States and other animal protection groups against the federal Department of Agriculture over planned plants in New Mexico and Iowa. The groups quickly filed an appeal on Friday as well as an emergency injunction request.
The ruling also eliminates a legal hurdle that had blocked Rains Natural Meats in Gallatin from opening its commercial plant. But a Missouri Department of Natural Resources permit issued on Oct. 29 limits Rains to processing "non-equine species of animals."
