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Italy looks to ban horse meat 08 Feb 2010
Italy is the largest consumer of horsemeat in Europe with more than 48,000 metric tonnes, but horse meat is under threat from a cross party proposal to ban its sale.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation 213,000 horses are slaughtered in Italy every year, however, Francesca Martini, with the Italian health ministry and a member of the ruling Right-wing coalition, has put forward a bill banning horse meat, arguing that the "dignity of horses should be respected."
The motion has won considerably cross party support with opposition centre-Left MPs also backing it and among those leading the call for a ban is Italy's agriculture minister Luca Zaia who says horses should not be eaten and instead "considered just like cats and dogs".
Zaia’s support has angered people who live in his home region of Veneto, which covers Venice and Verona, where horse meat is considered a culinary delicacy.
The average national consumption is around a kilo of horsemeat per year per person, according to figures from the Italian health department.
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