Pressure to end non-stun following 100,000
signature petition
A PETITION calling for the end of
non-stun slaughter has reached 105,000
signatures as new figures revealed an
increase in the number of animals killed
without prior stunning.
The British Veterinary Association
(BVA), supported by the RSPCA, said
the milestone was a significant step in
the campaign to end non-stun slaughter
and showed ‘strong public backing’.
The Government e-petition was
launched last year in a bid to highlight
the practice which it believes
compromises animal welfare at the time
of death.
• European and UK legislation
requires all animals to be stunned
before slaughter to render them
insensible to pain.
However, a derogation in the legislation
allows animals to be slaughtered
without stunning for Muslim and Jewish
communities – Dhabihah slaughter
for halal food and shechita slaughter for
kosher food.
The BVA said the success of the
e-petition would increase the pressure
on the Government to rethink its
position on non-stun.
The association called on the chairman
of the Backbench Business Committee
to honour the e-petition and hold a
House of Commons debate in the next
Parliament.
BVA president John Blackwell said:
“It is no surprise that this petition
has exceeded 100,000 signatures in
just nine months. There is growing
public concern about the welfare
of farm animals and people believe
animals should be treated as humanely
as possible throughout their lives,
including at the time of slaughter.
“Animal welfare science and practical
experience indicate that cutting animals’
throats while they are fully conscious
can cause significant pain and distress.
There should be no exemption under the
law to allow non-stun slaughter and we
urge politicians to take action on this
important issue.”
Last month the BVA called on the
Welsh Government to end talks with
a company that had been approved by
the Food Standards Agency to deliver
non-stun slaughter at an abattoir in
Caernaforn, Wales.
A new business training programme for aspiring dairy
producers is being launched at Gelli Aur in the autumn
by the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers in
collaboration with DairyCo, the NFU
and The Andersons Centre.
Called Entrepreneurs in Dairying, the programme
follows on from RABDF’s inaugural programme
staged last year in North Wales which successfully
trained 17 new entrants.
The Gelli Aur initiative, which begins in September,
will offer 20 places and feature a programme with eight
weekly sessions delivered by national industry specialists.
RABDF council member and Gelli Aur farm manager
John Owen says: “Despite the current milk price slump,
we continue to have a resurgence of interest from young
people looking to enter and progress in the dairy sector.”