A kosher poultry slaughterhouse has been shut down due to unsanitary conditions.
Federal Judge Stephen C. Robinson of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on Dec. 29 ordered New Square Meats, a kosher poultry slaughterhouse, closed after years of attempts by the USDA to force the plant to comply with the federal Poultry Products Inspection Act.
The slaughterhouse’s attorney asked the judge to allow the plant to operate for an additional two weeks to give its kosher-consuming customers time to find another source for kosher poultry. The judge refused the request after government lawyers said it was too great a risk, according to the Journal News.
During an April inspection, federal inspectors found there was no soap or hand sanitizers in the employee bathrooms, and found poultry residue on walls, light fixtures and in the manager’s office.
The slaughterhouse hopes to build a new facility in the Chassidic Jewish community of Ramapo, near New Jersey, but the county is opposed.
The plant was slaughtering 1,500 to 1,600 chickens and turkeys a day, six days a week. Its products are sold at Oneg Poultry, a store in New Square, N.Y. — jta