Daily Southtown
January 10, 2004

Slaughterhouse not giving up

Contrary to several reports, Cavel International of DeKalb said it's rebuilding its horse slaughtering facility, despite strong opposition from anti-horse-slaughter legislators and supporters.

Cavel distributes its products mainly to overseas markets.

State Bill 1921, which is pending, would outlaw the slaughter of horses for meat consumption in Illinois.

A press release posted on a Web site from a group supporting a ban on horse meat said Cavel International has decided not to go forward with rebuilding its facility and decided not to reapply for a license to operate.

"We sent the release to legislators to impress upon them that even if Cavel backs out, this issue isn't against Cavel, it's against slaughtering of horses in Illinois," said Gail Vacca, a anti-horse slaughter supporter.

"Those letters are all false," Jim Tucker, project manager of Cavel International, said Friday. "We are on schedule in our rebuilding and plan to be operational by March. We are reapplying this month for our license to operate."