Jewish groups pay tribute to nature of religious slaughter debate
Jewish groups paid tribute to the nature of a parliamentary debate on religious slaughter this week, after Jewish, Muslim and Christian MPs defended the practice.
The Westminster Hall debate was called by Neil Parish MP, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Beef and Lamb, who has called for CCTV to be installed in all slaughterhouses and for all meat to be labelled.
Shadow Farming Minister Huw Irranca Davies MP said any labelling system should be fair and informative
Parish acknowledged “a deficit in our veterinary understanding of the shechita (Jewish) method of slaughter” but referenced a recent report showing similar levels of blood retention in both stun and non-stun slaughter methods.
The Jewish authors of that report said: “If ritual slaughter not only causes levels of avoidable pain and distress to meat animals…but also fails in its stated purpose of removing as much blood as possible, compared with other methods, then it becomes more difficult to justify and defend.”
Hailing Tuesday’s debate, Shechita UK director Shimon Cohen said: “In many years campaigning I can’t remember a debate where the Jewish community’s perspective was so well represented.”
Cohen was less impressed with the British Veterinary Association, however, with the organisation accused of “obfuscating the need for proper labelling… in order to mislead consumers.”
It follows a BVA report that nine out of ten of its members believe that consumers should be better informed about slaughter methods.
BVA President John Blackwell said: “We believe labelling that clearly explains the method of slaughter would help all consumers make informed choices about the products they wish to buy.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
