AG bans shipping horsemeat through Texas

AUSTIN (AP) - Shipping horse meat through Texas that's destined for diners elsewhere is illegal.

That's according to an opinion issued this week by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott.

Texas already bans sale or possession of horse meat for human consumption. Abbott said the prohibition also extends to transporting horse meat that would be eaten by people.

Horse meat from Mexico had been shipped from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport until last year. The Tarrant County District Attorney's Office says it tried to stop the shipments.

The nation's last horse slaughter plants were closed following court rulings last year.

But thousands of American horses have been sent to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada since then.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)