Marin Sun Farms, Inc.: Non-Compliance to Humane Livestock Handling in 2024 (USDA)

313.15(a)(2)

On 8/13/2024 at approximately 0838, while observing postmortem inspection procedures on the slaughter floor, I Dr. REDACTED, SPHV observed the following noncompliance. A beef cow was loaded into the knock box, which has a metal door that swings open towards the slaughter floor. The stunning operator had forgotten to lock the door before loading the beef cow and the door swung open when the beef cow entered. Her neck was pinned to the side of the knock box by the door and I could see her legs scrambling to gain footing. The stunning operator immediately ran out to the floor. He tried closing the door from inside which released the cow’s head. He grabbed a handheld captive bolt gun and stunned her, rendering her unconscious. I took regulatory control action and applied US Reject tag No. B19890601 to the chute leading to the knock box and notified Mr. REDACTED HACCP Coordinator/ and facility manager. Mr. REDACTED told me that the incident was caused by operator error and that the stunner forgot to lock the door before loading the cow. He showed me how the lock works and assured me that when the lock is in place the door remains closed. He spoke to the stunner about the importance of locking the door. Mr. REDACTED also stated he would watch cows being loaded into the knock box and determine if they need to add anything more to the door for security. I removed the tag at approximately 0850 and told Mr. REDACTED I would be documenting an NR since the establishment did not drive the beef cow into the stunning area with a minimum of excitement and discomfort. This is noncompliant with 9 CFR 313.15 (a)(2).

313.1

On 4/24/24 at approximately 0850, I Dr. REDACTED, SPHV and Dr. REDACTED, DVMS observed the following noncompliance. While inspecting the chute that leads up to the knock box we observed different areas where the metal paneling is in disrepair. The chute is made of concrete and on the inside there are welded metal panels along both sides. One of areas of disrepair was at the spot where the cattle pens turn into the chute that leads to the knock box. In this spot cattle make a sharp turn to the right and there is exposed, sharp metal, roughly belly height, on the left side of the wall. Closer to the knock box, there were two spots of metal that were worn, bent, sharp, and had cattle hair attached. These spots are approximately shoulder and fetlock height. Normally one to three cattle occupy the chute at the time. While cattle wait in the chute to be stunned they frequently walk back and forth touching the sides of the chute. We notified Mr. REDACTED, facility maintenance manager, of the forthcoming noncompliance. This is noncompliant with 9 CFR 313.1.

313.15(a)(1)

On 2/15/2024 at approximately 1216, while performing a humane handling task, HATS Category VIII Stunning Effectiveness, I Dr. REDACTED, SPHV observed the following noncompliance. The last beef cow of the day was loaded into the knock box. It was fractious and attempted to jump out of the knock box. The cow settled down a bit but remained excited. The stunner, REDACTED, positioned the handheld captive bolt gun and fired. The captive bolt was lodged in the cow’s skull. I observed the cow remain standing, vocalizing, and tossing its head. When it tossed its head toward the stunner, the captive bolt dislodged, became airborne and hit the stunner. The stunner immediately grabbed the back up captive bolt gun and stunned the cow effectively. The cow immediately went down, and the stunner applied a safety knock. Approximately 10-15 seconds passed from the time the cow was first knocked to the second successful knock. The cow remained unconscious throughout sticking and bleeding. I called my front-line supervisor, Dr. REDACTED about the situation. Once the head was skinned, I examined the forehead and observed two holes. The first hole was approximately 5 inches from the medial canthus and had crushed the skull at an angle. Using a probing tool I determined the hole did not penetrate the skull more than an inch. The second hole, approximately 3 mm dorsal to the other hole, penetrated the skull perpendicular to the brain. Using my probing tool I was able to enter the skull by approximately 5 inches and noticed brain material on the probe when I took it out. I spoke with establishment maintenance manager Mr. REDACTED about the incident and the forthcoming noncompliance. He said they would be providing extra training for that stunner. He also said tomorrow they will have a secondary employee there to assist in verifying consciousness. This is noncompliant with 9 CFR 313. 15 (a)(1).