Labelling Meat And Poultry As 'halal'.

[hc4361]

Assuming you are neither Muslim nor vegetarian, would you be put off buying meat if you knew it was slaughtered the Halal way?

I have had this email from Tesco.
"For example, all our New Zealand lamb meets Halal standards."

I know for a fact that this isn't labelled on the product nor sold in the Halal section - I would expect some sort of label or symbol to indicate to Muslims that the product is suitable for them.

Could it be that Tesco believe they would sell less it the meat was labelled as Halal?

[rockyracoon]

In our Tesco there is a separate bit of the fridge with Halal meat in it, very clearly signed. I object to other meat being Halal and not labeled as such.

[MadMen]

Without wanting to sound thick, can someone please explain the difference between halal and non-halal to me, please?
I have bought (and eaten) halal meat in the past, for family members, but I haven't actually got a clue what makes it Halal.

To answer your question - no, it would not put me off.... but then that's probably because I have no idea what it means! :)

[Old_Geezer]

I may not notice, but if I did I may look to see where I could get meat slaughtered in a way I felt more humane.

[hc4361]

Yes, there is in mine, Rocky - but ALL Tesco NZ lamb is Halal.

[andy-hughes]

I think it would be hypocritical of any meat eater to start drawing fine distinctions about the way the animal died to supply their food.

It is possible, as you say, that some customers would be put off buying Halal meat, but as I say, I think that is hypocritical.

Either you eat meat and accept that an animal dies, probably not painlessly, in order for you to do so, or you take a moral stand and become a vegitarian or a vegan, depending how strongly you view the position of animals in the food chain.

So no, I would not be put off.

[Old_Geezer]

How can it possibly be hypocritical to wish to ensure ones prey is killed without anguish ?

[emmie]

i would be, it should be labelled halal.

[andy-hughes]

MadMen - here you are - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halal

It's not think at all - education is simply a matter of learning what you don't know - and ignorance itself is not an issue - only wilful ignorance.

[friedgreentomato]

No it would not bother me.

[jake-the-peg]

No but I'd like to know if it was stunned

Halal is often stunned first Kosher is not.

There was an EU initiative to have this labelled but a certain religious lobby got it stopped (it wasn't the muslims)

[andy-hughes]

Old_Geezer - because assuming that non-Halal slaughterhouses kill animals without pain and suffering is naiive.

[emmie]

Ḏabīḥah (ذَبِيْحَة) is the prescribed method of slaughtering all meat sources excluding fish and other sea-life per Islamic law. This method of slaughtering animals consists of using a well sharpened knife to make a swift, deep incision that cuts the front of the throat, the carotid artery, wind pipe and jugular veins. The head of an animal that is slaughtered using halal methods is aligned with the Qiblah. In addition to the direction, permitted animals should be slaughtered upon utterance of the Islamic prayer "in the name of God

[tamborine]

I object to beasts being bled till death. Its unnecessary suffering by sadists

[ichkeria]

"How can it possibly be hypocritical to wish to ensure ones prey is killed without anguish ? "

it isn't, but it IS, as Andy said, questionable to get in a tizzy about "halal" products if normally one doesn't give a second thought about how animals are slaughtered. Which I am sure is the case with a lot of us.
We're not long after discovering that beef is being supplemented with horse, so how can we be sure that so-called "humane" methods of killing animals for meat are as humane as we like to think.

[society]

I'm vegetarian. But, when buying meat for family, given the choice of buying halal and kosher over non-halal and non kosher, I'd always choose halal and kosher.

[MadMen]

Thanks Andy :-)

Ok, so I get it now. The animal has it's throat slashed and it's left to bleed to death?

Er... without wanting to sound heartless, no, this wouldn't put me off.
If I really cared about animals being killed for food, then I would be a vegetarian.

[pastafreak]

I seem to recall reading a while back that ways/methods were being looked into to make halal slaughter more humane. Though I'm not sure any method is completely free of pain or anguish for the animals....going by some films I've seen of 'acceptable' practices.
On that basis I would not be too bothered-as long as it is labled as such.

[McMouse]

I thought 'halal' meant not fit for human consumption.

[MadMen]

"Its unnecessary suffering by sadists"

Lol. Bit dramatic.

[jake-the-peg]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/sep/14/religion.animalwelfare

//The birds are collected from farms at night, transported to the site in the early hours of the morning, and kept in darkness until they are ready to be killed. Workers hang them upside down by their feet in shackles, suspended from a conveyor belt, or 'line', which then dangles them through an electrified bath. Their heads are submerged, and a high-frequency current in the water stuns them. The line keeps moving, taking the birds on to the slaughter area, where three men are standing ready to cut their throats.

The slaughtermen are Muslims. Dressed rather like welders, head to toe in protective clothing, they stand on one spot for eight hours with a knife, slashing the throats as they come by on the line while murmuring continual prayer. Being stunned, the birds pass by silent and still, making it an unexpectedly calm and mechanical job. Each man slaughters roughly a bird a second, and the slashing knife, dangling neck and spurting blood form a surreal rhythm, simultaneously horrific and rather peaceful. //