The Philadelphia School District is pulling all beef items off the menu after the District learned today it had received shipments from Westland/Hallmark Meat Company. Last month, the Humane Society released a video showing Westland/Hallmark employees using forklifts and electric shocks to forcibly bring diseased and sick cows to slaughter. Westland/Hallmark provides meat to the national school lunch program. As a result of the video, the USDA issued a recall – the nation’s largest – of over 140 million pounds of the company’s beef products.

Interestingly enough, I had called the PA Dept. of Agriculture Monday to inquire about Philadelphia’s status. The told me know more than 170 school districts across the state had received Westland/Hallmark meat shipments and he would get back to me about Philadelphia.