Provident Meat Company: Non-Compliance to Humane Livestock Handling in 2024 (USDA)

313.15(a)(1)

HATS Category VIII: Stunning Effectiveness While the Consumer Safety Inspector (CSI) and District Veterinary Medical Specialist (DVMS) were observing stunning effectiveness at approximately 7:48 am on the second beef presented for slaughter, a black angus steer, the establishment owner, utilized a hand-held captive bolt (HHCB) device which initially misfired. The establishment owner reloaded the HHCB device to attempt to stun the beef. The first stun attempt did not render the animal unconscious, and the steer remained standing. The establishment owner immediately retrieved the readily available back-up .22 caliber magnum rifle that was ready to use. The establishment owner applied a second stun attempt with the firearm that rendered the animal unconscious. No regulatory control action was taken due to the observed immediate and effective corrective actions. Upon inspection of the dressed head, two penetrating holes were observed. One penetrating hole was low and angled downward toward the sinus cavity. A second penetrating hole was in the target zone. The DVMS and CSI observed a non-compliance to regulation Title 9 CFR 313.15(a)(1) to produce immediate unconsciousness, and the DVMS instructed the CSI to issue a noncompliance and verbally notified the establishment owner of the forthcoming noncompliance record. There have been no noncompliance records issued within the past 90 days for the same root cause. This establishment has not implemented a robust systematic approach to the humane handling of livestock.