State 1 mandatory State 1 voluntary No State meat 1 inspection law STATE MEAT INSPECTION LAWS-TYPE OF LAW AS OF JUNE 1, 1967 (BASED ON STATUTES ONLY, NO ATTEMPT MADE TO EVALUATE ADMINISTRATION OR ENFORCEMENT) State Note: Totals-State mandatory, 26; State voluntary, 13; no State meat inspection law, 9; other, 2; and contemplating, 12. A-Ante mortem inspection; S-Post mortem inspection; P-Processed meat inspection; G-General food laws including requirements for processed meats; T-Tax-supported funds; U-User fees [Packer pay; C-Combination T and U] Virginia.. A, S, P. Washington. West Virginia... A, S, P. Wisconsin. STATEMENT OF L. BLAINE LILJENQUIST, PRESIDENT AND GENERAL MANAGER, WESTERN STATES MEAT PACKERS ASSOCIATION, INC., WASHINGTON, D.C. Mr. LILJENQUIST. Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, the Western States Meat Packers Association was formed in 1946 in 14 Western States. This includes the 11 Rocky Mountain-Pacific Coast States, Alaska, Hawaii, and Texas. I have been with the association nearly 22 years, and have been president and general manager since 1961. During the entire period of time I have worked closely with the State and Federal meat inspection programs. We are proud of the good job the Federal Government is doing on meat inspection. Certainly as the Department claims and as we claim in the industry, the Federal meat inspection is the model inspection program of the world. There is not any country that has the wholesomeness and the cleaniness that we have here. Our Association was formed in 1946. In that first year we developed a firm policy on meat inspection. We believe as an industry that every pound of meat that goes into consumer channels should be derived from animals that have had post mortem and ante mortem inspection by trained specialists, and proper sanitary handling of meat and meat products. It is our goal to cooperate with the Department of Agriculture in seeing to it that this is brought about, and to work in the various States to obtain assurance that our meat supply is wholesome and pure. Although it may be impossible to have farm-slaughtered animals inspected, we ought not to permit a farmer who slaughters his own animal without inspection to sell or give any part of the meat to another person. We think inspection should be 100 percent. We have worked toward that objective in our industry in the West with great success. I would like to call your attention to the table in my statement on page 3. Let us turn to it. It brings out that in 1907 we had 153 establishments operating under Federal inspection. Over the years, this number increased until by the end of the fiscal year we are now in, which will end on June 30, 1968, we will have 2,157 plants under Federal inspection. Right now, more than 85 percent of all of the livestock that are slaughtered in this country are slaughtered under Federal inspection. This high percentage increases each year as more and more plants apply for Federal inspection. To be federally inspected, you have to have at least one pound of meat moving in interstate commerce. Federally inspected plants are located in all 50 of our States, and most of the meat that is slaughtered in federally inspected plants does not cross State lines. Federal inspection means that you are eligible to cross State lines. They have to have some meat in interstate commerce. On the average, 85 percent of all livestock slaughtered in the United States is federally inspected; consumers can rely on this high portion of their meat supply with utmost confidence of its safety and whole someness. There are State inspection services in all of the Western States, providing for mandatory or volunteer inspection. The plants that operate |