to think Halal meat is cruel?

[IAmMiranda]

Bought a very nice panini today (bacon, brie and cranberry) from the local sandwich shop.

I didn't realise at the time that all the meat in that shop is Halal, which I am strongly opposed to.

Here is Wiki's description of Halal

^"Specifically, the slaughter must be performed by a Muslim, who must precede the slaughter by invoking the name of Allah, most commonly by saying "Bismillah" ("In the name of Allah") and then three times "Allahu akbar" (God is the greatest). Then, the animal must be slaughtered with a sharp knife by cutting the throat, windpipe and the blood vessels in the neck (while the animal is conscious), causing the animal’s death without cutting the spinal cord. Lastly, the blood from the veins must be drained."

AIBU to think this seems unnecessarily cruel?

(I realise the UK meat industry is far from perfect but this seems particularly nasty)

Halal bacon? .

Why is it more cruel than how "regular" meat is slaughtered?

From what I understand the animals have to be alive when they are slaughtered to hear the prayer. If this is true then yes it is bloody cruel.

really have you seen the slaughter of non halal animals

it is all cruel how we treat animals in mass production of meat/dairy products. the animals are meant to die very quickly, the animal is meant to not feel fear before and the blood is drained after the animal is dead (so it does not go off so quickly)

Halal bacon now thats a first!

halal bacon i wonder what that is like

You obviously haven't looked fully into the way animals are slaughtered 'regular' meat.

A very unusual shop, nay, unique shop that sells halal bacon.

Halal bacon? Really OP

what do you think the animal understands the prayer so is aware it is about to have its throat slit?

From what I understand the animals have to be alive when they are slaughtered

well. yes. You can't be slaughtered if you're dead.

LIWL if regular meat is slaughtered correctly ( ie by an abattoir that is following correct guidelines) they are stunned before they are slaughtered. So one would assume they feel less pain.

None of this accounts for the terror and anxiety the animals feel whilst being transported and herded into the slaughter house though. They can smell death and sense the fear in animals before them, so I'm sure they are terrified.

It's all bloody cruel. There's no way mass production of meat and dairy could be anything but cruel.

Now where can I get this halal bacon

I might be wrong but Halal bacon is usually turkey bacon.

but yes IMO it is very crule.

Hm if I was a sheep, would I rather be electrocuted to death or have a sharp knife taken swiftly to my neck whilst my face is covered ( as is the true halal method whereby no animal can see the knife or the slaughtering of its buddies). I think I would probably prefer the latter!

I used to work in a halal shop, guy came in and asked for a ham roll - maybe it was OP's brother. these halal threads are getting a bit tedious now.

The vast majority of halal meat is stunned before slaughter now.

I wonder what the demand on halal bacon is though?

Slaughterhouses often deal with both halal and non halal slaughter. Often the only difference is for halal slaughter a tape of the appropriate prayer is played on a loop. This is especially true of mechanised slaughter and mechanised chicken slaughter.

Stun free halal is different however.

As everyone else has pointed out, your bacon will not have been halal.

You can get Halal 'bacon'- it is made of chicken, turkey or beef.

Unfortunately no slaughter process is pleasant, and the only real way to avoid cruelty is to become a vegan (which I'm not btw).

i have seen a lamb (well big lamb maybe she was technically a sheep) slaughtered in this way. was very quick yes distressing i saw it accidentally, then of course could not turn away

she had a lovely life before well certainly her last 30 days were when she was fussed over and feed lots. she tasted very nice too

distressing to see, distress to the sheep was minimal

'From what I understand the animals have to be alive when they are slaughtered`

This made me smile. Not much point in slaughtering dead animals.

Not sure about not causing stress as they're hung from their find legs prior to having their throats cut. That would stress me out!

There are very few pleasant ways to die.

Yanbu but this is mumsnet so you wanted everyone to agree with your real point of view you should have posted extolling the halal method's virtues.