.... The issue arises because for traditionally minded Jews and Muslims it is a matter of principle that animals slain for meat should be dispatched by a single swipe of a sharp knife, one that drains the blood and causes a rapid death. The death is not rapid enough for many animal-rights advocates, though.
Some Muslims accept that the animal can be stunned before slaughter (as is considered humane in most Western countries), so long as death still results from blood loss. Other Muslims feel unable to make that concession.
.... Arguments over this practice, pitting animal-welfare advocates against Muslim and to some extent Jewish groups, have been raging for at least five years in the north-west of England. In October, Lancashire County Council voted to reaffirm its determination to eliminate non-stunned meat from school meals, while the Lancashire Council of Mosques has pledged to redouble its efforts to block the ban.
This dispute might lead the Council of Mosques to call for a boycott of school meals, a tactic it has used in the past. Thanks to the NSS findings, the controversy may now spread to other parts of the country. [The Economist] Read more
