From: Rachel Lang [rlang@rcnchicago.com]
Sent: Tuesday, February 06, 2001 5:24 PM
To: FDA Dockets
Subject: Docket # 98P-0151/CP1

U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Dockets Management Branch
5630 Fishers Lane, Room 1061
Rockville, MD  20852
RE: Docket # 98P-0151/CP1


February 7, 2001

Dear FDA-Dockets Management Branch,

I am writing respectfully to urge you to grant petition 98P-0151/CP1 to prohibit the slaughter of non-ambulatory animals, otherwise known as downers, for the human food supply. Animals who are too sick or injured to stand should not be allowed into the human food chain for several critical reasons of which you may be aware. 

Including downed animals in the food supply creates an elevated risk of bacterial contamination in our food, an unnecessary risk that can be devastating to human health. There is also evidence that some of these downed animals may be infected with a form of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or “Mad Cow Disease,” which has been linked to a fatal human illness, Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD). Moreover, downed animals cannot be transported or moved humanely. These already suffering animals are pushed with tractors or dragged with chains to stockyards and slaughterhouses, unthinkably cruel methods that inflict a wide range of injuries, from abrasions and torn ligaments to broken bones. 

As you may know, industry experts has estimated that 90% of downed animals can be prevented with better care and handling. Eliminating the market for downers will give the industry the incentive needed to prevent downed animals in the first place. Moreover, since downed animals make up just a tiny percentage of the number of animals slaughtered, prohibiting their marketing and slaughter for the human food supply will not create undue economic hardship for the livestock industry.

The granting of petition 98P-0151/CP1 is absolutely critical to human health and safety because it will eliminate potential sources of contamination and disease from the human food supply, thereby protecting ourselves and our children from serious and unnecessary risks. Moreover, it will eliminate the excessive and needless suffering many thousands of downed animals endure in transit to stockyards and slaughterhouses each year. 

Granting this landmark petition just makes good common sense for everyone—the consumer, the livestock industry, and the animals. Therefore, I am requesting that you take swift and favorable action by granting petition 98P-0151/CP1. Thank you for your prompt attention to this very urgent matter. 

Very Sincerely,

Rachel M. Lang
5511 N. Wayne Ave.
Chicago, IL 60640