Pies and ready meal in the UK are filled up with Halal and Kosher meat - vet expert
A new scandal is about to erupt in the UK as one of the former presidents of Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, Lord Alexander Trees, has mentioned that Halal and Kosher meat is often put on sale in the food chain as ordinary meat and could be found in pies and ready meal products, informs The Daily Mail.
The news may trigger responses from animal welfare activists who are condemning the sacrificial methods required by halal compliance. Halal and kosher meat is obtained from animals conscious at the moment of their slaughter and the subject is very sensitive but also very disputed between the adepts of religious freedom who defend the rights of the religious minorities of Muslims and Jews and the animal welfare activists.
"It is almost certain that meat which hasn’t been stunned is getting into the normal food chain. Many members of the public are understandably not aware of it. There is no doubt a substantial part of the carcass is sold into the normal food chain. Other people will receive that meat in a processed form", explained the former president of Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in an article published in the Vet Record journal.
The problem seems to be related to meat traceability, an issue that is discussed from some time now by the British MP's and officials from the government.
From his point of view, Lord Trees considers that killing an animal without stunning it first causes "pain and discomfort". Earlier this month, Food Standard Agency released data that shows that the number of sheep slaughtered in the country without being stunned has doubled in the last six years, to approximately 3 million. The non-stun slaughter of animals is still permitted in the UK but there is a great concern among the buyers and the authorities regarding the way animal are treated before they are slaughtered.
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