The Agriculture Department proposed on Tuesday banning from the food supply all cows that are too sick or injured to walk, a long-sought victory for advocates of animal welfare.
The proposed regulation would end an exemption that allowed the animals, known as downer cows, into the food supply if a government veterinarian inspected the animal and deemed it fit for slaughter.
Agriculture Secretary Edward T. Schafer said that while the exemption was rarely granted — it applied to fewer than 1,000 of the 34 million cattle that were slaughtered last year — it had nonetheless created confusion among consumers.
The exemption was criticized after the Agriculture Department announced in February that 143 million pounds of beef would be recalled. Westland/Hallmark Meat, of Chino, Calif., had supplied the meat to retailers and school lunch programs. It was the largest beef recall in United States history.
