from Religion Media Centre
The Conservative MP Esther McVey has introduced a Ten Minute Rule Bill calling for compulsory labelling of kosher and halal meat. She told the Commons that the proposal was not intended to ban kosher or halal meat, but compulsory labelling was necessary to allow informed choice.
She said: “The unique process of halal and kosher meat requires the animal to have its throat slit. In the case of halal meat, the animal is often stunned before it is killed—although it might not be—and for the shechita killing for kosher meat, there is no pre-stunning. This lack of stunning causes the animal to experience severe pain”.
Jewish News quotes Shimon Cohen, the director of Shechita UK, which campaigns to defend Jewish religious slaughter, saying the process renders an animal insensible to pain almost immediately. He said if the aim is transparency, then labelling should cover all slaughter practices.
The bill passed its first reading on Tuesday and is due to return for the second reading on 10 July.