plained. Boneless beef can be distinguished from boneless horsemeat only by chemical analysis in a laboratory, he said. The three men, Sol Braunstein, Barry Dvorin, and Robert Dvorin, pleaded guilty to three charges, one count each of conspiracy and violating the Horse Meat Act and the Meat Inspection Act. OCTOBER 1966 FORT WORTH MEATPACKER GETS 1-YEAR SENTENCE FORT WORTH, TEX.-A Texas packer has been sentenced to one year in prison and fined $1,500 for violating a cease and desist order issued in 1962 under the Packers and Stockyards Act, according to the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. Irving Rosenthal, in business as Rosenthal Packing Co., was charged with buying 54 head of livestock in June, 1964, while his current liabilities exceeded his current assets. He was further charged with failing to pay the full price for the livestock at the time of the cease and desist order. FEBRUARY 1967 THREE GUILTY IN PENNSYLVANIA HORSEMEAT SCANDAL PITTSBURGH.-Three persons pleaded guilty to charges of illicit sales of horsemeat for human consumption, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports. The case involved several million pounds of horsemeat, which was obtained from Mexico and other sources during the years 1962, 1963, and 1964. Meat inspectors in USDA's Consumer and Marketing Service first detected the illicit movement of the horsemeat, which had been repackaged and sold as frozen boneless beef. Investigation disclosed that the horsemeat was sold to various processors in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Maryland as frozen boneless beef at prices higher than those prevailing for horsemeat. This was accomplished through the use of counterfeit government inspection marks and false labeling. USDA noted that the horsemeat which came from Mexico was imported legally as edible for human consumption, since it passed inspection requirements before entering this country. C&MS meat inspection officials said that boneless beef can be distinguished from boneless horsemeat only by chemical analysis in a laboratory. While some shipments of the horsemeat were seized by Federal and local officials in Cincinnati, Philadelphia, and Baltimore late in 1963 and early 1964, substantial quantities of the horsemeat reached the consumer in the form of processed meat products such as frankfurters and sausage. MARCH 1967 GUILTY OF MID VIOLATION WASHINGTON.-A North Carolina meat packer was found guilty on 3 counts of violation of the Federal Meat Inspection Act. George H. Murphy, Louisburg, N.C. was fined $3,000, the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture announced. Meat inspection officials said Murphy "consistently shipped uninspected barbecued pork products from Louisburg to South Hill, Va." The illegal activities took place between July 2, 1965 and Jan. 21, 1966. WASHINGTON.-A Utica, N. Y., meat packer was found guilty of violation of the Meat Inspection Act and fined $5,500 in Federal Court. Dominick Gerace, president of Party Packing Co., was also given a 3-year suspended sentence. The Consumer and Marketing Service of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture charged the company with applying fraudulent meat inspection labels to 64 cartons of boneless veal. The shipment contained 3,840 pounds. MAY 1967 FINE OHIO PACKER FOR MEAT FRAUD CINCINNATI. John Schlachter's Sons Company, Inc., a meat packing firm and its president, William H. Remke, were fined a total of $69,000 in the U.S. District Court here. The firm and its president were found guilty on nine criminal counts which included charges of counterfeiting and using official U.S. Department of Agriculture meat grading marks. This in turn, it was charged, resulted in fraud and false claims against the Federal government. Officials of the Livestock Division in USDA's Consumer and Marketing Service were alerted to the possible use of counterfeit grading devices at the plant in September, 1965. An investigation by USDA revealed evidence to support this. Charges of fraud and false claims against the Federal government were made in connection with company deliveries to U.S. Air Forces bases in Ohio. Schlachter's, in filling government contracts which called for USDA Choice beef, had delivered large quantities of a lower grade meat, falsely represented and marked as USDA Choice, the government charged. JUNE 1967 SIX FOUND GUILTY IN HORSEMEAT TRIAL PITTSBURGH.-Six men were found guilty of selling horsemeat for human consumption. They were fined a total of $21,500, sentenced to a total of 82 years in jail and given probationary periods totaling 25 years in federal court here, reported the U.S. Dept. of Agricutlure. PARTICULARS OF THE CASE The case involved several million pounds of horsemeat which was obtained from Mexico and other sources during the years 1962, 1963, and 1964. The horsemeat was repackaged and sold as frozen boneless beef in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland through the use of counterfeit government inspection marks and false labeling. While some shipments of the horsemeat were seized by federal and local officials in Cincinnati, Philadelphia, and Baltimore late in 1963 and early 1964, substantial quantities reached the consumer in the form of processed meat products such as frankfurters and sausage. SEPTEMBER 1967 Two MEN JAILED IN INSPECTION VIOLATION EL PASO, TEX.-Two men were sentenced to a year in jail for shipping nonfederally inspected meat across state lines in violation of the Meat Inspection Act. The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture said they had shipped 11,500 pounds of uninspected meat from New Mexico into Texas in August, 1966. Both men, Francisco Borunda and Odorico Olivas, entered guilty pleas. SEPTEMBER 1967 STOP INTERSTATE MOVEMENT OF DISEASED CARCASSES The interstate movement of carcasses or parts of diseased animals and poultry should be halted except for movement directly to rendering plants, USDA has proposed. The proposal sets up guidelines that will strengthen procedures now in effect to prevent the interstate spread of livestock and poultry diseases. NO INTERSTATE MOVEMENT Under this proposal, carcasses or parts of animals or poultry that die as a result of, or at the time of death had any disease declared endemic to the United States may not be moved interstate. Exceptions provided under this proposal will permit the interstate movement of diseased animal carcasses or parts when such shipments are moved in leakproof vehicles directly to a rendering plant and accompanied by a certificate issued by a state or federal inspector or an accredited veterinarian. SEPTEMBER 1967 HORSEMEAT SWITCH CANS MERKEL BROKER NEW YORK.-A major figure in the New York horsemeat scandal involving the Merkel Packing Co. was sentenced to 18 months on charges of conspiracy to violate the Meat Inspection Act. Charles Anselmo, a meat broker, was found guilty of interstate shipment of 700 cartons of non-federally inspected meat bearing counterfeit inspection stamps. Two Wisconsin mink ranchers were also jailed in connection with the case. Anselmo purchased meat from the mink ranchers who had acquired dead and dying animals, presumably for use as mink food. As a result of this public disclosure and investigation, Merkel Meat Co. has been forced to discontinue operations. Mr. OREAR. It is important to note that these offenses represent only those instances where the traders in dirty meat and the practitioners of "hanky panky" have wandered into the jurisdiction of the USDA, and been caught at it. Prosecutions by the USDA, such as these, suggests the probability that a substantial volume of this traffic in unwholesome products has stayed carefully out of reach of Federal inspection and quietly found its way into human consumption. All the while that these situations were developing, State authorities were vigorously resisting moves by the USDA to broaden its authority to meet the needs of the situation. The meatpacker associations were belittling the importance of the problem in order to protect the "good name" of the industry. Congress and the American housewife both remained serenely unaware of the dimensions of the problem. From time to time instances of deplorable sanitary conditions, even within State-inspected establishments, have come to our attention through our internal channels. Even though somewhat inured to run-of-the-mill stories of cockroaches and rats, we were deeply shocked to examine a series of affidavits from employees of a North Carolina packinghouse, a large one for that State, which recounted instances of "snuff spit" on the floor, sausage meat fallen on the same floor which was then picked up and shoved into the stuffer, and so on. One woman swore that she had seen "condemned meat reworked and put in smoked sausage. I have seen the lard cartons packed with lard after rat leavings had been emptied from them," she said There were several such statements detailing outrageous conditions, all duly sworn. The committee will be relieved to know that the affidavits were brought to the proper authorities, and the State inspector was relieved |