Europe wants method of slaughter labeled on meats

As part of a proposal to regulate food information, the European Parliament voted to require that meat labels state the method of slaughter.

Kosher meat would be labeled as “meat from slaughter without stunning,” according to the proposal passed last week by the Parliament. The vote was 559 in favor, 54 against and 32 abstentions.

The proposal will need the approval of the 27 member countries of the European Union before it becomes law, after which food businesses will have between three and five years to comply.

Jewish groups believe the decision is discriminatory and will hurt the kosher food industry. Some 70 percent of each animal killed according to Jewish law is used by the nonkosher market.

The proposal singled out the requirement to label meat as slaughtered without stunning, while methods such as electrocution, shooting, gassing or clubbing were not mentioned specifically.

The proposal comes on the heels of a decision by New Zealand’s government to ban kosher slaughter as part of a new animal welfare code mandating that all animals for commercial consumption be stunned prior to slaughter to ensure that they are treated “humanely and in accordance with good practice and scientific knowledge.” — jta