USDA probes alleged inhumane slaughter, illegal meat sales at Perris halal ranch

A halal ranch in Perris is under federal investigation following allegations that livestock were inhumanely slaughtered and that the operation sold meat without required federal inspection, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

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The probe stems from a complaint filed June 26 by the national animal advocacy organization Animal Outlook. The complaint alleges Shahnawaz Ranch violated the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act and that an  affiliated business, SoCal Meat Co., knowingly sold meat processed at the facility despite the lack of required USDA inspection.

A halal ranch raises livestock and may slaughter animals and produce meat in accordance with Islamic dietary practices, which generally require a swift cut to the throat that severs the carotid arteries and other major blood vessels while invoking God’s name and allowing the blood to drain.

Eid al-Adha videos

According to the complaint, an Animal Outlook investigator attended a May 27 event at the ranch celebrating the Islamic holiday Eid al-Adha, in which many Muslims mark the holiday by sacrificing livestock and sharing the meat with family, friends and those in need.

According to the complaint, the slaughter practices shown in the videos violated federal standards governing the humane slaughter of livestock and, according to Animal Outlook, were inconsistent with accepted halal slaughter practices.

Video footage shot by Animal Outlook investigator Scott David and obtained by the Southern California News Group allegedly shows men chasing goats around a pen, dragging them by their horns and hind legs into a slaughter area and wrestling them to the ground before cutting their throats.

“It would often be a struggle to get the animals from the pens into the slaughter area. Once they were in the slaughter area they’d basically be wrestled to the ground, then someone would come up with a knife and cut into their throats,” David said in a telephone interview. “The animals would writhe and kick on the ground for awhile, their legs would kick, their tails would fling around. These animals seemed to be alive for awhile after their throats were cut.”

Vet declaration

In a declaration from veterinarian James Reynolds, which Animal Outlook submitted to the USDA with its complaint, Reynolds attests to having seen the videos, concluding that the ranch “engaged in multiple acts of inhumane slaughter and handling, as well as numerous and serious non-conformances with sanitary standards for slaughter facilities.”

Reynolds, a veterinarian for more than 40 years who said he is familiar with ritual slaughter, humane slaughter standards and sanitary standards for slaughter facilities and has conducted seminars on the subjects, said the animals in the videos showed signs of sensibility for minutes after their throats were cut, and the goats and sheep were alive for two to three minutes after their throats were cut.

“In one especially egregious incident, and in a second, a worker appeared to begin skinning an animal while the animal still showed signs of consciousness,” Reynolds said in his declaration.

Reynolds also noted multiple unsanitary conditions in the slaughter area, including animals killed and dressed outside, the slaughter area having dirt and gravel nearby, workers wearing street shoes, and animal carcasses strung on a rail in the slaughter area exposed to the sun, wind, flies and dust.

The USDA confirmed in an email that it became aware of the allegations on July 15, and that its Food Safety and Inspection Service has launched an investigation. An agency spokesperson declined to comment further, citing the pending investigation. According , animals slaughtered under religious practices, including halal methods, must be handled humanely and protected from unnecessary pain or distress.

Cease and desist

Just as federal investigators were kicking off their investigation, Riverside County code enforcement and sheriff’s deputies responded to the ranch on July 18 and issued a cease-and-desist order during the ranch’s weekend-long grand opening event. Neighbors had complained that animals were being slaughtered during large events held on the property.

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“Neighbors have been complaining about hearing animals screaming while being butchered,” according to a code enforcement report, which noted a restaurant named Shairaz was operating on the 20-acre undeveloped property on Gustin Road, near Cajalco Road. “The animals are reportedly being slaughtered and served to guests at the outdoor restaurant,” the report said.

The report also noted that a large tent, refrigerators and outdoor grills were set up on the property, and that about 200 people had attended the grand opening event the day prior.

Code Enforcement Officer Rigoberto Jimenez, who took the report and issued the cease-and-desist order, informed ranch operator and SoCal Meat Co. owner Rafi Khan, who is leasing the 20-acre parcel of undeveloped property, that he had to shut down the event because he did not have permits.

Khan, according to the report, told Jimenez his “reputation will go to hell” if he shut down the event, that 300 people had attended the night before and that another 300 attendees were expected that night, according to the report.

Operations halted

In a telephone interview, Khan said he has temporarily halted operation of the ranch and restaurant. He said he is working with the county planning department to get permits to operate.

He said animal slaughter will no longer be allowed at the ranch, and that the prior slaughtering was done by customers who purchased the animals and killed them on site. The animals were not slaughtered by ranch hands, Khan said.

“As of today, it’s done. It’s gone,” he said.

Khan said he has worked as a halal chef for several catering companies and restaurants in the Southern California region, and dreamed of starting his own halal ranch.

“It was my passion. I thought, ‘Let me give it a shot,’ ” Khan said. “And here I am, six months later, in trouble.”

Khan disputed the allegations from Animal Outlook about the SoCal Meat Co. Although he owns the company, he said it is not affiliated with the ranch and that he buys his meat from legitimate wholesalers and resells it. He said the meat is USDA inspected.

Additionally, Khan said the animals raised on the ranch do not supply the on-site restaurant with its meat. He said two separate vendors run the restaurant.

He said he will not give up, is doing his homework and working to get in line with county ordinances and guidelines to hopefully reopen the ranch and restaurant, or have food trucks in lieu of a restaurant.

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Khan said he can’t just walk away from it all.

“I’m too invested in this,” he said.