Following lawsuits filed jointly by the Animal Welfare Institute and Farm Sanctuary, the USDA is now obliged to publicly post records indicating enforcement action in terms of the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act and the Poultry Products Inspection Act.
The agreement following a lawsuit will result in the posting of data back to January 2017. These animal activist groups and others now have access to processing and packing plant records that may impact the image of broiler integrators and meat packers when publicized.
A Federal Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York approved the settlement. The USDA will be responsible for paying the Plaintiffs' attorney fees arising from a 2018 trial in the amount of $300,000.
A representative of the Animal Welfare Institute noted, "thousands of slaughterhouse records are now readily available to concerned citizens and animal advocacy groups who wish to monitor USDA enforcement without waiting months or even years for the department to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request.
Implications for poultry slaughter and brand image are self-evident.