is kosher slaughter humane

Shechitah (sheh-HEE-tah) is the Jewish ritual of slaughtering permissible land animals and fowl so that they are considered Kosher and are able to be eaten by Jews. But I don't see that in scriptures. The animal can still breath when cut this way. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. The Court’s starting premise was that “a scientific consensus has emerged that prior stunning is the optimal means of reducing the animal’s suffering at the time of killing.” April 2013, All ... Humane slaughter is a complex and multifaceted topic that is distinctly separate from the welfare issues of how an animal is raised. July 2013 Indeed, as PETA itself has acknowledged, shechita is more humane than the common non-kosher form of shooting the animal in the head with a captive bolt, for reasons noted above. But kosher-certifying authorities say that no form of stunning before slaughter is permissible, said Rabbi Menachem Genack, who oversees … Some claim that kosher slaughter can, in principle, be relatively painless, while others contend that cutting the throat of a conscious animal is always inhumane. • As a vegan for more than 30 years I am fascinated by those outraged over halal/kosher slaughter. Are kosher animals raised and slaughtered humanely? If kosher slaughter is a legitimate target for the ECJ, then why not add male infant circumcision as well—another requirement of the Jewish and Muslim faiths that has been faced with legal and political challenges across Europe in yet one more demonstration of how centuries of anti-Semitism have reappeared dressed in humanist concerns. Is there some place you can point to in the scripture that says "to minimize pain to the animal" or something? Such actions would get a mammal slaughterhouse shut down in seconds, but since birds used for food enjoy no legal protections in the United States, these horrific practices are allowed to continue. My old blog on kosher slaughter, kosher meat, and animal welfare. Chicken Soup The British Veterinary Association should look elsewhere What she saw was shocking. I have heard that butchering an animal that is kosher (Jewish) or halal (Muslim) is partly done to be humane. Rabbi Tzvi Freeman July 21, 2011. When used each animal is stunned by hand by way of an electric knife and then bled out by way of a cut made with that same instrument. Regardless, kosher slaughter may be very brutal in practice, as scandals have shown. Like any other method it also has its downsides but overall it seems to be a balanced and effective approach. Scope of regulations. Halal slaughter is not humane – according to the RSPCA – yet virtually all our livestock (bar pork) is now Halal slaughtered. The most brutal of these violations is the common occurrence of inaccurate and ineffective stunning which does not render the animals unconscious yet still forces them to move down the line through the slaughter process causing cattle to be skinned and dismembered and hogs to be scalded while they are still conscious. Despite the humane intention and spirit of the Jewish dietary laws, there are no standards to ensure that kosher slaughter is any less cruel than conventional slaughter. In light of this new video exposing the gouging second cuts—and Agriprocessors’ quite different conduct during the tour—Dr. Thus, while kosher meat is halal, halal meat is not kosher.   •   Contact That doesn't mean everybody has to do it themselves, but it does mean learning about slaughter. The present piece is my attempt at a response. I have so far ignored the other question: Under what conditions were the animals raised? [...]. Kosher Slaughter: An Introduction. A shochet (שוחט, "slaughterer", plural shochtim) is a person who performs shechita. Under Kosher slaughter, known as shechita in Hebrew, the animal's neck is cut with a surgically sharp knife, severing its major arteries, causing a massive drop in blood pressure followed by death from loss of blood. This, whole discussion is quite complex and is not something I can cover in one post, so as it is Poultry Month, I am going to focus this piece on issues concerning poultry. Indeed, despite the availability of more humane restraint alternatives, such as upright restraint pens, shackle-and-hoist remains the primary restraint method in South American kosher slaughterhouses, which produce most of the world’s kosher beef. Clearly conventional (non-kosher) animals are not. For example, consider the following selections from a BBC article on the subject: The Farm Animal Welfare Council (FAWC), which advises the government [of the UK] on how to avoid cruelty to livestock, says the way Kosher and Halal meat is produced causes severe suffering to animals. If administered correctly this system seems reliable and can work well on a healthy and diverse range of poultry. The plant is the country's largest producer of meat that is glatt kosher, the highest standard of cleanliness. As a shochet who is proud of the long-standing tradition of shechita that … Are halal (حلال) and kosher (כשר) slaughter humane and merciful or brutal and barbaric? It also requires that, once stunned, animals must remain unconscious throughout the butchering process. December 2013 For Marilyn Eden I appreciate your concern. October 2014 When the cut is done correctly, behavioural reactions to the cut are much less than reactions to air hissing, metal clanging noises, inversion, or excessive pressure applied to the body. These illegal practices happen every day at USDA-inspected plants across the country. Keeping Kosher is a very important aspect of Judaism because it benefits the mind, body, and soul; however non-Jews often consume Kosher meat because of the special process involved. July 2014 [...]. Glatt Kosher. Is Shechita Humane? There you'll find: blog posts about shechita and related topics, educational slaughter presentations, kosher slaughter training, and a selection of high quality professional kosher slaughter equipment. The cut severs the trachea, esophagus, and carotid arteries so the animal quickly slips into death from blood loss. The most widespread of these is the stunning knife. America’s 1958 Humane Slaughter Act, which also requires pre-slaughter electric shock, asserts, based on scientific research, that this type of ritual slaughter generates equivalent pain to pre-slaughter electric stunning. The most contentious aspect of ritual slaughter—taking the international stage more than once—is whether shechita (שְׁחִיטָה) and zabiha/dhabiha/al-dhabh ( ذَبِيْحَة) (the terms for slaughter performed to kosher and halal standards respectively) are the most humane and merciful or the most brutal and barbaric. As such, there are incredibly strict requirements that kosher slaughter be humane, and the same is true for Halal. horse to plan a pro­ gram based entirely upon an untested as­ sumption. Humane slaughter is a complex and multifaceted topic that is distinctly separate from the welfare issues of how an animal is raised. For more on the brutality of the conditions in which factory-farmed animals are raised, I recommend these sources: Home   •   Privacy And kosher slaughter is a quicker process. Factory Farming My old blog on kosher slaughter, kosher meat, and animal welfare. [...], In all three slaughter plants [that used well designed holders], there was almost no visible reaction of the animal's body or legs during the throat cut. • As a vegan for more than 30 years I am fascinated by those outraged over halal/kosher slaughter. Vegetarianism The graphic video, and the subsequent statements by kashrut certifying agencies and the Israeli Rabbinate that the abuse of the animals does not affect the kosher status of the meat, show that the laws of shechita alone do not protect against animal abuse. I believe that leaving our killing to machines, while cost effective and even seemingly "humane" at times, is … Cut the esophagus, trachea, carotid arteries, and jugular veins in one quick incision. Today’s kosher meat comes from the same abusive factory farms as all other meat. For new content check out my new website, posts about shechita and related topics, educational slaughter. When I tell people that I do not oppose the killing of animals as such—but rather the weeks of wretched conditions that animals endure in cramped and disease-ridden factory farms and the pain and stress that their subsequent slaughter generally involves—they ask whether I would object to humanely raised, grass-fed animals that are killed painlessly. It is also the only American plant allowed to export to Israel. Some claim that kosher slaughter can, in principle, be relatively painless, while others contend that cutting the throat of a conscious animal is always inhumane. of high quality professional kosher slaughter equipment. As such, there are incredibly strict requirements that kosher slaughter be humane, and the same is true for Halal. I saw a Peta video of a "Kosher" slaughter that was quite disturbing, not humane in my mind. In North America some kosher slaughter plants use very stressful methods of restraint such as shackling and hoisting fully conscious cattle by one rear leg. My Jewish Learning is a not-for-profit and relies on your help. I quote from her book, Thinking in Pictures, and Other Reports Prom My Life With Autism: I will never forget having nightmares after visiting the now-defunct Spencer Foods plant in Spencer, Iowa, fifteen years ago. November 2014 Bruises or injuries caused by the restraint methods (or from any other cause) would be objectionable to observant Jews. The response of the Orthodox Union to the AgriProcessors scandal included the following statement: We continue to vouch for the kashrut of all of the meat prepared by AgriProcessors, Inc., which was never compromised. This is hardly the case with the shackle and hoist method nor an inversion holding pen as is evidenced by the recent revelations in Iowa. Moreover, even if kosher animals are … [...]. We can all agree that animals should be treated humanely. FAWC said it wanted an end to the exemption currently allowed for Kosher and Halal meat from the legal requirement to stun animals first. This system, featured in the video above, supplies the precise level of voltage required to stun each chicken, by continuously measuring the amount of electricity needed to do, d. It has won several humane poultry awards and seems to be another promising alternative for fast-paced automatic slaughter. I have heard that butchering an animal that is kosher (Jewish) or halal (Muslim) is partly done to be humane. Sustainable Meat The Court’s starting premise was that “a scientific consensus has emerged that prior stunning is the optimal means of reducing the animal’s suffering at the time of killing.” But today, IMO, there's no reason for that. "It wasn't a surprise to me, but in terms of the religious community, they are adamant animals don't experience any pain, so the results might be a surprise to them," says Johnson.   •   About She told me that the first time she visited a kosher slaughter house, she heard screaming cattle from a half kilometer away and wondered what was different in this place. In some instances, it’s been shown to be much worse. "The court concludes that the measures contained in the decree allow a fair balance to be struck between the importance attached to animal welfare and the freedom … ​Welcome to The Kosher Omnivore's Quest! A survey of some of the laws governing the slaughter of kosher animals for meat. Most important is to have a very sharp knife and to keep the skin taught as well as to use good animal handling techniques. Both the Jewish and Muslim religions demand that slaughter [be] carried out with a single cut to the throat, rather than the more widespread method of stunning with a bolt into the head before slaughter. Is there some place you can point to in the scripture that says "to minimize pain to the animal" or something? Are kosher animals raised and slaughtered humanely? Kosher Meat Groups such as the RSPCA believe that the most humane way to slaughter livestock is to use irreversible stunning (which renders the animal dead) before slitting its throat. Conditions in kosher slaughterhouses, however, are very rarely optimal. Since more humane systems exist, the inversion methods are avoidable, and thus a violation of Jewish law. In the meantime, when it comes to eating poultry, one can rest assured that kosher slaughter is a high welfare system that can be relied upon virtually anywhere throughout the world. But on its own merit, and certainly compared to what else is out there, the, The first good alternative that people usually discuss (mentioned in the above  PETA video), is. Stressful or painful methods of restraint mask the animal's reactions to the throat cut. A shochet must be learned in the laws of kosher slaughter and adept at sharpening and polishing his knives, known as shtellen ah chalef in Yiddish. June 2017 These selections come from an article (February 2005) in the Jerusalem Post: It has been scientifically determined that industrial holding pens that allow the animal to stand upright during shechita (kosher slaughter) greatly reduces the animal's pain and stress at the time of slaughter. Clearly conventional (non-kosher) animals are not. Each terrified animal was forced with an electric prod to run into a small stall which had a slick floor on a forty-five degree angle. When shechita is performed properly in this manner, the animal does not kick or bellow or display other outward signs of anxiety, and evidently is rendered insensate within seconds. In my diary I wrote, `If hell exists, I am in it.'. Grandin made a new assessment of Agriprocessors, stating, “The undercover video clearly showed that when they think nobody is looking, … Any blemish on the blade at all, even one big enough for a human hair to fall into, renders the knife unacceptable for kosher slaughter. From what I have been able to ascertain, the kosher label does not imply anything about conditions of raising. Welcome to The Kosher Omnivore's Quest! A key intellectual consideration is separation of the variable of restraint stress from the animal's reaction to the slaughter procedure. Shechita Since animals cannot communicate, it is impossible to completely rule out the possibility that a correctly made incision may cause some unpleasant sensation. November 2013 I thought I read that one should cut behind the ear on the throat area and should avoid the wind-pipe so it could still breath while it was bleeding out. As such, there are incredibly strict requirements that kosher slaughter be humane, and the same is true for Halal. Evidence from slaughterhouses around the country shows that, due to increased production speeds and industry deregulation, slaughter animals are routinely dragged, skinned, dismembered, and scalded while alive and fully conscious. The other person then asks whether I would prefer the purchase of kosher meat, since kosher animals are supposedly slaughtered quickly and with minimal pain. Employees wearing football helmets attached a nose tong to the nose of a writhing beast suspended by a chain wrapped around one back leg. 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