The meat and livestock industries in the United States have
received some unwanted news coverage lately: the lean finely
textured beef, or pink slime, issue; the country’s fourth case
of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE); and another
undercover video of animal cruelty.  While the BSE case is
covered in this issue of Render, and the pink slime situation
doesn’t directly affect renderers, the undercover video is
something to be aware of because it happens all too frequently
and is often unwarranted. But in this new case, the Humane
Society of the United States (HSUS) might actually have a leg to
stand on.  “Unacceptable and indefensible” were the words used
by an Animal Care Review Panel to describe the mistreatment of
piglets and sows at a Wyoming hog farm. A video revealing the
abuse was shot in April 2012 and released by the HSUS shortly
thereafter. Most all viewers, including those in the industry,
agreed with the panel, which is comprised of some notable names
in animal agriculture: the actions in the