HORSE MEAT, BRUMBIES, GREYHOUND RACING & THE QUESTIONS THAT REMAIN
[You can read that blog post here.]
At the time, serious questions surrounded Adrian Talbot’s operation at Downside, near Wagga Wagga. Horses associated with rehoming programs had been found dead, hundreds of horse carcasses had been discovered, and authorities were investigating an operation suspected of slaughtering horses for pet food.
We have an overdue update to that story…
$12,000 FINE + $30,952.58 COSTS
On 23 June 2026, Adrian Talbot was sentenced in Wagga Wagga Local Court after pleading guilty to two offences involving the operation of an unlicensed knackery and an unlicensed animal food business. He was fined $12,000 and ordered to pay a further $30,952.58 in costs.
The official announcement was published by the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD).
Read the official NSW Government media release HERE.
BUT the fine is only part of this story…
NOTE: The decision to keep the Wagga Wagga greyhound track open was officially announced on 2 September 2026 by Greyhound Racing NSW (GRNSW). The board reversed a decision to close that was announced in December 2025 after receiving a proposal from the Greyhound Breeders, Owners and Trainers Association (GBOTA) to take over the club’s operation and fund improvements to the track.
The bottom line: Wagga was saved because a racing-industry organisation offered to fund the upgrades and take over operations, improving the club’s assessment enough for GRNSW to reverse its decision. Community campaigning helped keep the issue alive, but the official rationale was financial and operational—not an animal-welfare reassessment.
ADRIAN TALBOT RE-HOMER OF BRUMBIES, RACEHORSES & PETS?
Adrian Talbot publicly claimed to be operating a brumby rehoming program.
Horses — including brumbies, racehorses and pet horses — were sought after and presented as – being rescued, rehabilitated, and re-homed.
Instead, authorities later uncovered hundreds of butchered horse carcasses, leading to the shutdown of an illegal knackery operation and environmental charges related to dumping remains.
Investigations documented by Brumby Facts revealed that:
the operation was not licensed,
carcasses were improperly disposed of,
and horses believed to be destined for rehoming were allegedly slaughtered.
Further public reporting showed that Adrian Talbot had previously been barred from participation in an off-the-track thoroughbred (OTTB) rehoming program, raising additional concerns about how “rehoming” claims were being used — and misused.
The case highlighted how easily rehoming narratives can function as cover in the absence of enforceable tracking and oversight – ESPECIALLY when money can be raked in by selling horsemeat to, for example, the greyhound racing industry.
UP TO 19 TONNES OF HORSE MEAT SOLD TO GREYHOUND TRAINERS
According to ABC News, Talbot sold between 18 and 19 tonnes of horse meat to three greyhound trainers in New South Wales and Victoria between August 2023 and May 2024.
The court heard that approximately 94 horses had been killed during the period of offending, with that figure estimated from the weight of pet food sold.
Think about that for a moment.
Ninety-four horses.
These were not simply figures on a spreadsheet. Every one of those horses was an individual animal, and every one had a life before becoming part of this trade.
ABC News also reported that Talbot received approximately $110,000 for the meat and hired vehicles to deliver it.
During an inspection of the property, investigators discovered approximately 300 horse carcasses. They also seized meat as evidence of the unlicensed operation.
The NSW Government confirmed that both horse and pig carcasses at various stages of decay were observed on the property.
THIS WAS NOT SIMPLY A PAPERWORK PROBLEM
One of the most striking aspects of the ABC report was the language used in court.
Prosecutor Stephanie Erian told the court:
“This is not a mere technical breach where one has let their license lapse.”
She went on to describe the case as one of the worst examples of these offences at that time.
Talbot’s barrister argued that his client’s conduct had been “reckless rather than intentional” before the March 2024 inspection, and said Talbot had been ignorant of the licensing requirements.
However, the judge also addressed Talbot’s conduct after horse-meat processing at the property had stopped, noting that the unlicensed pet-food van operation continued.
As ABC News reported, Judge Gareth Christofi described Talbot as having shown:
“an enormous level of wilful blindness to continue the business”
The distinction matters. The court considered the circumstances of the offending, Talbot’s guilty pleas and other mitigating factors before imposing sentence.
The outcome was a $12,000 fine, together with more than $30,000 in costs.
WAS THE FINE ENOUGH?
Adrian Talbot reportedly made approximately $110,000 selling 18–19 tonnes of horse meat. His fine? Just $12,000.
While he was also ordered to pay $30,952.58 in costs, the question remains: is that really a sufficient deterrent?
If the consequences of operating illegally are relatively small compared with the revenue generated, what stops him—or someone else—from doing it again?
WHERE DOES THE REHOMING STORY FIT?
Adrian Talbot had publicly presented himself as operating a brumby rehoming program. Our earlier reporting examined concerns surrounding horses obtained under the banner of rehoming and the discovery of large numbers of horse carcasses at his property.
THE QUESTION THE SYSTEM HAS US ASKING…
Horse meat is legally used in Australia as feed for racing greyhounds.
It is commonly supplied to greyhound owners and trainers and, in some cases, delivered directly to racing facilities or training tracks.
Against that backdrop, the existence of an illegal knackery producing cheap horse meat, operating at the same time a close family member was embedded in greyhound racing administration, raised a question that regulators and the public are entitled to ask:
Was horse meat from an illegal operation entering the greyhound racing supply chain?
No allegation is made here.
No conclusion is asserted.
But the question exists because the system allows it to exist.
THIS IS NOT JUST ABOUT ONE FAMILY
This story matters not because of who the Talbots are — but because of what their cases reveal.
Australia currently lacks:
a national, enforceable lifetime tracking system for horses,
meaningful oversight of “rehoming” claims,
transparent supply-chain auditing for horse meat used in racing industries,
and clear separation between industry governance and commercial interests.
When animals fall out of racing systems, they often fall out of visibility.
Greyhounds who fail to perform are considered surplus can vanish from public accounting.
Racehorses are often referred to as ‘wastage‘ and can disappear into slaughter pipelines.
Brumbies presented as “saved” can end up butchered.
Different animals.
Different industries.
Same outcome.
Until transparency, traceability, lifelong accountability and independent oversight are enforced across the horse and greyhound racing industries, these questions will continue to arise — and animals will continue to pay the price.
You don’t need to be an expert to make a difference — you just need to speak up.
We are providing a done for you copy and paste letter – plus how to contact the right decision-makers and ask for meaningful improvements to greyhound racing regulations.
If this work matters to you, please consider donating. Behind the scenes, we are caring for 20 rescued horses at one sanctuary alone, every day, while working to prevent more animals from being failed by the same systems.
What do YOU think?
Join the conversation on our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/@NoAussieHorseSlaughter
#MOHM THREATENED?
We’ve been threatened by those in the horse racing industry and those who benefit from horse slaughter more times than we can count.
But we are not going away.
We are going to persist until horse slaughter no longer exists for any purpose within Australia -- and until the horse racing industry makes drastic changes.
We are going to continue our hands-on work to offer lifelong sanctuary to as many horses as possible. We generally have 20 at just one of our locations - at any given time.
We have the acreage to take on more horses as financial support allows.
TALBOT BROTHERS
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