Ritual slaughter in Australia

Introduction

In Australia there are approximately 32 million sheep killed each year for human consumption (both domestic and export). They are mostly pre-stunned in accordance with the relevant Australian Standard, and in line with State legislation (for domestic consumption) and federal legislation (for export).

Australia’s trade in chilled and frozen ‘halal accredited’ sheep meat to the Middle East is increasing significantly each year. For example, mutton exports reached 52,188 tonnes for the 2007/2008 fiscal year, and lamb exports to the Middle East increased 18% on the previous year to 23,743 tonnes (source: MLA). Together this level of sheep meat export is equivalent to 3.6 million live sheep (based on a ‘live sheep equivalent’ of 21kg/carcase).

Islamic and Jewish leaders in Australia accept the stunning of sheep. Halal and Kosher slaughter requires (amongst other things) that the animal not be injured at the time of slaughter. As electrical stunning doesn’t injure the animal—stunning is an acceptable part of ritual slaughter in Australia both for domestic consumption and export.

Australian standards for slaughter state that an animal must be stunned either prior or immediately after the throat cut to render the animal unconscious. These standards were published in 2002 and Animals Australia and the RSPCA had been assured by the Australian Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS) that this Standard was adhered to. As recently as May 2006 an AQIS representative advised the National Consultative Committee on Animal Welfare (NCCAW, which advises Minister McGauran) that all sheep slaughtered for export were stunned in accordance with the Australian Standard (section 7.12). Note: NCCAW has a long-standing position opposing unstunned slaughter (Position Statement April 1995).  

This current situation in Victoria has arisen through an Abattoir entering into a contract with a particular Middle Eastern importer who required meat from animals that have not been stunned at the time of slaughter. It has been suggested that a 'guideline' added to the Standards in 2004 provides a 'loophole' to allow this to occur in Australia.  Animals Australia's legal advice is that this 'guideline' has no legal standing—and therefore does not provide an exemption from the Australian Standards that require stunning to occur.

Australian halal sheepmeat exports (animals that have been stunned) to the Middle East are already valued at over 300 million dollars.  It is therefore completely unnecessary, unacceptable and cruel to permit slaughter without stunning of animals in Australia.

Electrical stunning

In most abattoirs sheep come along a narrow race to the slaughter area, electric tongs are placed on either side of the sheep’s head, and are held there for around 2 seconds. The sheep is rendered unconscious and the ‘stun’ will last for around 45 seconds. Electrical stunning itself does not injure the sheep. It is important that the sheep then has it’s throat cut without delay (after the stun) to ensure it bleeds out (insufficient blood/oxygen to maintain life) prior to the time the sheep would normally regain consciousness.  Once ‘bled out’ the sheep’s body will then be hoisted onto a processing line to be skinned, gutted, cut up etc.

The science related to the duration of consciousness after slaughter

There have been many studies to determine the degree and duration of sensibility, consciousness, pain and suffering involved with unstunned slaughter. The time observed for the interval from throat cut to unconsciousness has varied in those studies from 2 seconds to 20 seconds. The delay to unconsciousness can be considerably longer if the blood vessels are not successfully cut, or if occlusion occurs—the vessels close before bleeding out is complete.

The most recent substantive review of the literature states (in its full version) that the 'average time to insensibility in sheep is 14 seconds—and some sheep will take at least 17 seconds to become unconscious.' The report is the ‘Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Animal Health and Welfare on a request from the [EU] Commission:

Extract from Section 1.1

‘The animals which are slaughtered have systems for detecting and feeling pain and, as a result of the cut and the blood loss, if not stunned, their welfare will be poor because of pain, fear and other adverse effects. The cuts which are used in order that rapid bleeding occurs involve substantial tissue damage in areas well supplied with pain receptors. The rapid decrease in blood pressure which follows the blood loss is readily detected by the conscious animal and elicits fear and panic. Poor welfare also results when conscious animals inhale blood because of bleeding into the trachea. Without stunning, the time between cutting through the major blood vessels and insensibility, as deduced from behavioural and brain response, is up to 20 seconds in sheep, up to 25 seconds in pigs, up to 2 minutes in cattle, up to 2.5 or more minutes in poultry, and sometimes 15 minutes or more in fish.’

Published in ‘The EFSA Journal’ (2004), 45, 1-29] (emphasis added).

The legal situation re stunning and slaughter

Legal advice received by Animals Australia is that the slaughter of animals in commercial abattoirs must be carried out in accordance with the relevant ‘Australian Standard’. This is the relevant ‘Standard’ for all exported meat and is incorporated as part of the relevant federal legislation.

The standard is the Australian Standard for the Hygienic Production of Meat and Meat Products for Human Consumption ("AS4696-2002") and the relevant sections are:

AS4696 – Slaughter – 7.10:

Before sticking commences animals are stunned in a way that ensures that the animals are unconscious and insensible to pain before sticking occurs and do not regain consciousness or sensibility before dying.

AS4696 – Ritual Slaughter – 7.12:

(1) This provision only applies to animals killed under an approved arrangement that provides for ritual slaughter involving sticking without prior stunning;
(2) An animal that is stuck without first being stunned and is not rendered unconscious as part of its ritual slaughter is stunned without delay after it is stuck to ensure that it is rendered unconscious.

Current situation in Victoria

Information was provided to Animals Australia in mid-2007 that abattoirs have been killing sheep without stunning for Middle East contracts.

In Animals Australia’s view—broadly speaking—slaughter of sheep for export will breach the cruelty provisions of the Victorian Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act (POCTA) 1986 unless, it is done according to the relevant federal legislation (which includes complying with standard AS4696-2002).

It was subsequently revealed that several abattoirs were performing unstunned kosher and halal slaughter of sheep – operating under an 'approved arrangement' issued by AQIS – for export.  The former Minister for Agriculture called for a review of existing ritual slaughter standards.  After considerable delay, a scientific review on the welfare risks of unstunned slaughter was completed in late 2008 (see media coverage).

The unstunned slaughter of somesheep continues in several Victorian abattoirs using an existing (and still legally disputed) loophole. On 6 November 2009 Australia's Federal and State/Territory Agriculture Ministers (the PIMC) will meet to consider the future of this cruel method of slaughter in Australia.