Policy could drive up non-stun meat in public sector, NSS warns

The National Secular Society has warned policy changes could lead to more meat from animals slaughtered without stunning supplied in the public sector.

A consultation document proposing changes to public sector food and catering policy in England includes a requirement that menus must "take account of" religious and cultural dietary needs of consumers.

In its response, the NSS said this could create a duty for public sector organisations to actively supply kosher and halal meat from animals slaughtered without stunning, despite most of the public opposing non-stun slaughter on animal welfare grounds.

The consultation is being held by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), which says it aims to "use public sector purchasing power to ensure positive change in the food system". It says its vision is for public sector food and catering to be "an exemplar to wider society" in delivering positive animal welfare benefits.

But the NSS expressed disappointment that that there is no prohibition on meat from animals slaughtered without stunning in the proposed policy.

It said it was "concerned" that without an explicit prohibition, the new requirement for public sector organisations to take account of religious diets would force them to supply non-stun meat in areas with high Jewish or Muslim populations.

Animal welfare legislation requires all animals to be stunned before slaughter to minimise suffering. But exemptions are granted for religious communities to meet Jewish and Muslim dietary preferences for kosher and halal meat.

The government's advisory body, the Farm Animal Welfare Council, has said animals slaughtered without pre-stunning are likely to experience "very significant pain and distress" before they become unconscious. RSPCA, Compassion in World Farming and the British Veterinary Association all support an end to non-stun slaughter to improve animal welfare at the time of death.

Seventy-seven per cent of the UK public support a full ban on non-stun slaughter, without religious exemptions.

Non-stun slaughter in meat supplied in the public sector

Despite the overwhelming public opposition to non-stun slaughter, meat from this method is widespread in public sector settings.

Research by the NSS in 2018 found at least 17 councils across the UK are supplying non-stun halal meat to at least 140 schools. In many of these schools there is no separate meat option for children who do not want to eat non-stunned meat. Research by The Times found schools are supplying non-stun halal meat without informing parents.

As of last year, meat from animals slaughtered without stunning is being sold in parliament.

The NSS expressed concerns that non-stun slaughter "is becoming increasingly widespread and normalised". It said the number of animals slaughtered without stunning increased dramatically between 2013 and 2017. Although figures published by DEFRA earlier this month indicate non-stun slaughter in 2022 decreased for certain species (sheep), for other species there was no change (cattle) or an increase in non-stun slaughter (goats).

The current Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services apply to hospitals, the armed forces and prisons. The wider public sector "is encouraged, but not mandated, to comply with the standards". The NSS said the standards should be mandatory across all public sector organisations in England and include a prohibition on non-stun meat.

NSS: Non-stun meat should never be supplied in public sector

NSS head of campaigns Megan Manson said: "We are alarmed that these proposals, far from prohibiting the supply of non-stun meat, may create a duty for public sector organisations to provide it to satisfy religious demands.

"There is a general public expectation that food paid for with public money, in any setting, is of good quality and ethically sourced.

"Most of the British public, including animal welfare groups, deeply oppose non-stun slaughter as an unnecessarily cruel method of killing animals. While religious exemptions to slaughter regulations exist, the government should not support, endorse or encourage this form of slaughter. Therefore, non-stun meat should never be supplied in public sector food and catering."

The consultation closes on 4 September. Responses can be submitted here.

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