Stop shocking chickens says MEP
June 18, 2008 5:03 PM
A local Euro-MP is calling for a pain free approach to be used in the slaughter of chickens.
Electrocution after shackling is the most common method used by the slaughter industry to stun poultry before they are killed. The birds are suspended upside down on an automated line, flapping frantically in a bid to free themselves, before passing through an electrical water bath where they are stunned.
But the process can prove extremely painful for the birds. Alternative methods, such as gassing, do not involve stressing the animals.
Already some 75% of turkeys are stunned using gas mixtures in the UK, and Chris Davies is calling for the introduction of painless stunning procedures to be included in a Europe-wide review of slaughter methods.
The Liberal Democrat Euro-MP says that the widespread introduction of a more humane approach would involve extra costs, but believes that a target date needs to be set.
He said: "The earlier the better many would argue, but the sooner a date is set the longer the period that abattoirs could be given for making changes and the lower the cost.
"Too often we treat living creatures as though they were mechanical parts on a factory production line. Many people believe that we have a responsibility to keep to a minimum the suffering of animals we use for food."
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