7/26/13 Meat processing laws puts Swartzentruber Amish at odds with the Ohio Department of Agriculture

  • By Nick Sabo
  • July 26, 2013
  • 705
                        
SUMMARY: Apple Creek man would have to install electricity to get licensed A Swartzentruber Amish man fined for butchering hogs without a license is out of the business, and couldn’t get back in without compromising his religious beliefs. Jecky H. Hershberger, 46, 6013 Zuercher Road, Apple Creek, was fined $1,250 and costs by Wayne County Municipal Court Judge Timothy VanSickle July 25 on 14 counts that he violated Ohio Department of Agriculture laws involving the butchering of hogs. Hershberger has admitted to butchering 990 hogs in 2012, during which time he was not licensed. VanSickle noted that Hershberger has been very cooperative in the ODA investigation that led to his being charged with 32 counts of violating Ohio’s agricultural laws. Of those charges, 18 were dismissed. In addition to violating laws involving the processing and selling of meat, Hershberger was also charged with being a raw milk retailer. Hershberger faced the possibility of jail time, but VanSickle said that incarceration or probation was warranted in Hershberger’s case. The ODA investigation involved Hershberger’s purchase of hogs, which he was in turn slaughtering and selling. Hershberger further took in hogs from their owners, charging $10 per hog to dress the carcass but not otherwise process the meat. Hershberger was not represented by legal council in court hearings. Peter Dunn, a neighbor and family friend who said he “walked through” the legal process with Hershberger, spoke on Hershberger’s behalf at the sentencing. Dunn said that the Swartzentruber Amish, of which Hershberger is a member, do not hire attorneys “in these kind of matters”. Dunn, speaking after the hearing, said Hershberger stopped slaughtering hogs at his Apple Creek farm after being charged by the ODA. Dunn said Hershberger could not get licensed through the ODA because the regulations would require use of electricity and other utilities shunned by the Swartzentruber Amish. Hershberger declined comment. ODA public information officer Ashley McDonald said Hershberger’s illegally slaughtering hogs is an activity that would otherwise be legal in a licensed facility. “He was both selling to folks who brought their own animals in, and purchasing hogs at auction, slaughtering them and providing that product to individuals in the community,” McDonald said. McDonald said both types of slaughter must be carried out under one of two licenses issued by the ODA. Depending on the type of operation, meat processing facilities operate under a fully inspected operator’s license, or custom exempt. Custom exempt allows butchering of an animal that is brought in by its owner, McDonald said. The custom exempt facility processes the animal for a charge. The meat is to be consumed by the animal’s owner and is marked not for sale. There are currently four licensed custom exempt meat plants in Holmes and Wayne counties. There are eight such facilities in the ODA’s district four, which includes eight counties in whole or in part, and includes Holmes and Wayne. Of the 270 licensed meat plants in Ohio, 69 are custom exempt. To meet custom exempt standards, the butchering must take place in an indoor facility with written procedures to meet sanitation standards. Equipment must be clean, with the facility having a method for cleaning and sanitizing. The facility must further have a safe water source of potable water. It is legal for a hog’s owner to butcher the animal on their own property, for their own consumption, without being licensed. McDonald said the ODA has reached out to the Amish community to assist interested individuals with licensure who want to butcher commercially. McDonald said butchering without a license does not appear to be a large trend, but it is “something (the ODA) keeps an eye on.” Dunn said it would be impossible for Hershberger to meet the ODA standards without leaving the Amish church. Dunn said he hopes that someday the law will change. “He’s not likely to get licensed,” Dunn said. “There’s no option for a member of the Swartzentruber Amish to get licensed (as it) requires electricity. I’m disappointed that the current laws do not allow him to continue.” The fee for custom exempt and fully inspected operators licenses is $100, McDonald said. KUTLINES: Nick Sabo photos Swartzentruber Amish member Jecky Hershberger (seated) was sentenced July 24 to fines in Wayne County Municipal Court for violating ODA laws regarding the slaughter of hogs. Peter Dunn, (standing), a family friend, spoke on Hershberger's behalf. Some 75 family and friends showed up for the July 24 sentencing hearing of Jecky Hershberger on charges that he violated ODA laws regarding the slaughter of hogs.


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