Shocking footage of abuse to feature in RTE documentary on horse-racing industry

Disturbing footage including the sickening and systemic abuse of horses is set to be aired in a documentary next week. The shocking RTE Investigates probe into the equine industry will be broadcast over two nights.

Hidden camera footage captures the abuse that racing and showjumping horses can suffer once their time in the spotlight is over.

The probe exposes flaws in the traceability of horses, and how this is threatening the human food chain across Europe. It also lifts the lid on disturbing practices at Irish abattoirs, establishing a link between the racing and slaughter industries.

READ MORE: One-year-old racehorses among 1,400 slaughtered for meat in Ireland last year

READ MORE: Steep rise in number of racehorses slaughtered for meat in Ireland last year

The investigation found that the majority of horses sent to slaughter houses were thoroughbred racers that had earned their owners a combined €1.5 million. The racing industry in Ireland will receive €76 million in state support this year.

Professor Christopher Elliot, founder of the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University Belfast, said: “I’ve visited lairages and slaughter houses for probably about 45 years. I have never seen anything like this. This is like nothing I have seen ever experienced before it just is unbelievably distressing.”

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