I have just got an email back from Meat and Livestock Aust pointing me to their web page of FAQ's and responses and note they rely on an independent (Gov) review to show how they are improving animal welfare in Indo.
In that report - amongst a lot of talk about slaughter boxes they note
"Issues such as blunt knives have also been addressed and in some needy cases, we have provided an appropriate knife and stone. In some cases, when it is pointed out that ropes have been worn out, the local operator will replace them."
Don't get me wrong - I love a good steak - sausages - chops etc - in fact, if I don't have something on my plate that once had a pulse it's not a meal. But if I am correct Aust has been exporting cattle to Indo for at least 15 years - if after that length of time they still have to point out the need for the slaughterman to have a sharp knife and claim the provision of a knife and stone as one of thier achievements in a report dated May 2010 which they now seek to rely upon to show they care for animals sent to slaughter .....well what can one say!
A sharp knife is surely rudimentary to the slaughter of any animal. I see nothing inhumane in killing an animal with one quick slice provided both carotid arteries are severed completly in one fell swoop. The brain of most animals relies on the continued and uninterupted supply of oxygenated blood so will cease functioning within seconds of complete interuption of that supply.
If the knife is sharp enough and the procedure done deftly enough the animal should be unconscious before it realises what's happened. Just like when you cut yourself with a razor blade - it takes a few seconds before it hurts because the skin was not stretched in the cut - so provided the knife is sharp enough to not stretch the skin the beast should be unconscious from lack of blood and o2 to the brain before or very soon after it feels the pain.
If after 15 years they still need to impress upon the slaughtermen the need for a sharp knife I don't know wtf they have been doing with the $4.50/head they have been charging cow cockies unless thye been spending it in brothels
I had no choice but to reply as below
I love a good steak - sausages etc - in fact if I don't have something on my plate that once had a pulse it's not a meal. So I am no animal liberationist.
However, I read your reference document (5) http://www.daff.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/1886477/indonesia.pdf claiming improvement in animal welfare and am appalled.
That you have the audacity to list as an improvement your efforts to point out to some slaughter houses the need for a sharp knife and in the worst cases provided one and a stone......
Well, yes, it is undeniable that encouraging slaughter houses to use a sharp knife instead of a blunt one is an improvement in animal welfare but stuff me(I ddn't use the word stuff in the email, I was more direct than HC will allow) - to claim as you have, both online and the 4 corners programe that you are making real improvements in animal welfare recognised by industry and an independent reviews as recently as last year, is an astonishingly pathetic claim - especially if you have the front to claim encouraing them to use sharp knives instead of blunt ones is improvement after 15 years
That claim relies on interested Australians not reading your reference material
To claim the encouragement of and provision of a sharp knife to slaughter a beast as a sign of improvement and that you are doing a good job....well I am lost for words
Still very angry about this because you'd have thought the MLA would have learned from the middle east exposre 10 or 15 years ago
