Is this ethical to not have a choice ?

[baggiesmalls]

Wakefield school apologises after serving non-halal meat labelled halal www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-66114432

Just saw this on bbc news - now each to their own but I didn't know this was a "thing " in schools where by all meat is halal ?

This post s NOT religiously motivated but on animal welfare and cruelty grounds I wouldn't want my kids to have had no choice in eating halal meat.

When did this happen ? When did all meat served have to be halal ?

I wouldn't knowingly eat halal meat . I mean im virtually veggie but if I do buy meat it's organic , free range as I'd rather pay a bit more and eat it less for welfare reasons.

Your not going to get organic, free range meat in state school dinners. There just isn’t the money to cover the cost. Children in my child’s very small school get 4 meal choices so you do get a choice of food.

No I guess not - just seems unfair to cater for one group and one group
Only - but I get costs - my kids never had school dinners as they were crap and I could do a pack lunch better !

I just had no idea all meat served was halal. I wonder if that's all schools ?

The article clearly states it was the policy in that one school because of their school community so your OP is misleading.
Nobody seriously expects schools to serve organic, free-range meat. If that is what you want your DCs to eat at school then you give them a packed lunch.
It's as though you've never thought about school lunches till now when you've decided to be a gf.

No - my kids are 31 and 26 so I haven't had to think about them for a long time and yes they did have packed lunches

I've posted this on the ethical living section havent I ???

Because for me - that is not ethical .
Not being a gf at all and I did say this is not religiously motivated.

It's about ethics. Welfare . Animal
Cruelty .

If it bothers your kids they can eat veggie. Like all the religious kids had to for decades.

As I said .
My kids are 31 and 26 and I'd be worried if they were still having school meals .

Why do you think halal is unethical? We halal slaughtered and processed some roosters recently. My partner was very careful to ensure they were not distressed the kids wanted to play with them but we felt that might stress them out. Instead after a peck around in the garden with out them to roost with plenty of fresh picked snails and edible flowers. Then in the morning my partner used a sharp knife and said a prayer.

I'd rather eat @DrJump 's roosters than factory farmed any day.

They were pretty tasty.

I used to live abroad where all meat was halal unless labelled otherwise and remember having this conversation. I don’t particularly like the thought of killing meat in a halal way (eg without stunning first) but I don’t actually know how it’s done in the UK, it would be hearsay. Whilst your post may not be religiously motivated Sikhs can’t eat meat that has been ritually slaughtered so by making all meat halal it’s a different group that are excluded.

I think a normal sized school can't realistically provide both halal and non-halal meat options.

So they need to decide for their own population which option is preferable, and then make it known, and stick to it.
Provided there is also a vegetarian option there will always be something kids can choose (allergies aside). So there will always be a choice.

A school with a high muslim population might choose halal. A school with a high Sikh population might not.

Nothing ethical about unnecessarily killing a sentient being though, however you do it. And they are not lovingly stroked to death in the U.K. If you go sit outside a slaughterhouse killing pigs you might be able to hear their panicked screams as they are gassed.

Not to mention the effect on those who have to kill animals day in day out.
https://www.bbc.com/news/stories-50986683.amp

I’m not sure factory farmed meat is ethical full stop. How that animal dies is the last step in a difficult process.

I wouldn’t care at all. There’s much bigger problems with the food industry

It’s been standard for a while, I believe, though our entire family is vegetarian, so it was never an option. I agree with pps on the ethics of intensively-reared meat in general.

I've worked in a school where both halal and non-halal chicken was provided, and in one where they refused to have halal chicken due to the ethics of the school.

It's about ethics. Welfare . Animal
Cruelty .

If you eat meat then you aren’t that bothered about animal welfare, cruelty or ethics.

A dead animal is a dead animal.

We have halal and non-halal options at our school of around 400 pupils.

I wonder having just visited an area that essentially has almost no crops, what people think about cultures where meat is a staple. Inuit, Mongolians, Maasai? There are places and cultures built on hunting and herding. And they don't seem noticeably less humane than the veggie ones. I'd argue they might be more humane.

Philosophy I know!