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[Contents]-[ Foreword ]-[ Terms ]-[ General principles ]-[ Methods of slaughter ]
[ Consumption of meat ]-[ Stunning of animals ]-[ Stunning and pain ]

Electrical stunning of animals: research and conclusions of the study committee(1)

Studies undertaken

  • Experiments were carried out using two sheep: an adult weighing 35 kg and a lamb weighing 18 kg. They were given electrical stunning treatment under identical conditions applying a 300 volt/ 1.25 ampere electric current for 3 seconds. The electrodes were applied bitemporally. l' Both animals displayed tonic and clonic characteristics of epilepsy before making a full recovery .
    The experiment demonstrated the reversible nature of electrical stunning, under given conditions, in which the stunned animal returns to the normal pre-stun state. No other effects relating to age or size were observed.

  • A video film showing the use of electrical stunning on calves, not :
    exceeding 450 kg in weight, prepared by the Meat Industry Research :Institute in New Zealand, was screened.

  • Colour slides, showing the effect of electrical stunning on the electroencephalogram of sheep, prepared by the Food Research Institute,Bristol, United Kingdom, was also screened.
  • A number of research studies carried out at the Institute of Veterinary Medicine (Robert Von Ostertag Institute) were presented and discussed.

  1. Participants were taken on a morning tour of the Berlin-Spandau abattoir to observe commercial slaughter procedures, as applied to cattle, using both the Islamic and the usual bolt-shot pistol method.

A general discussion of the subject as a whole then followed, the conclusions made are as given below.

Discussion

The discussion focused on the following points:

First: Does electrical stunning mitigate the slaughter or does it constitute a form of torture for the animal?

At present, we do not have conclusive proof" that electrical stunning is totally comfortable from the animal's point of view. However, the following findings enhance the probability that it does eliminate pain, provided the conditions given under item 3 below, are met.

  1. Effective electrical stunning is dependent on inducing an epilepti~ seizure in the animal, which is believed to lead to loss of consciousness and subsequent loss of pain sensation due to the following reasons.

    • The activity of the brain during epilepsy is, according to the electroencephalogram, shown to be grossly abnormal in comparison with its activity during the normal state of consciousness. It also indicates an absence of sensation under induced epilepsy. [1,2,3,4]

    • Recorded electrical activity of the brain reveals a gross shortage, or even a total loss, of ability by the cortt~X to respond to external stimuli during epilepsy. [5]

    • Various studies confirm that, during (:i seizure, people suffering from voluntary grand mal epilepsy, or those receiving electro-convulsive therapy, lose consciousness as well as pain sensation. [6,7,8]

    • Attempts to produce conditional disturbance in animals subjected to electrical stunning have not been successful. [8,9,10]

  2. Electrical stunning applied anywhere on the animal other than on the head does not induce epilepsy and cause pain.

Second: Does electrical stunning of animals lead to death?

Comprehensive studies in developed countries, especially New Zealand,  have shown that, when applied to the head only, electrical stunning of animals  does not cause death, since it is a reversible and recoverable state. If not slaughtered, the animal so stunned would make a full recovery .Heart failure  would not, under normal conditions, occur, provided the following specific requirements are met.

  1. The electrodes are applied in a temporal position only, so as to avoid the flow of electric current through the body and the heart. In the case of calves, the frontal-occipital position also was found to be possible.

  2. The electric current should not exceed the limits required to induce epilepsy. It is recommended that stunning devices with amperage rather than voltage limitation capabilitieS be used, in order to prevent excess amperage when cases of low impedance are encountered. Recommended current levels are 0.75 ampere for sheep and 2.0 amperes for cattle.

  3. The duration of current flow should not exceed the period necessary to produce epilepsy, which is between 3 and 6 seconds.

      When the above requirements are met, heart failure is highly improbable, although exceptions cannot .be entirely ruled out. Any animals that suffer heart failure for any unforeseeable reason should be clearly identified during slaughter and rejected as not suitable for consumption by Muslims. For, when the heart function stops, blood from the carotid arteries is no longer pulsatile and bleeding is slower than in animals that are slaughtered while still alive. These symptoms are clearly and easily recognizable at the time of slaughter .
      It is worth noting, however, that when these recommendations are observed, the age and size of the animal become irrelevant in achieving death, as demonstrated by the experiment conducted in the presence of the Committee members.

Third: Effects of electrical stunning on the quality of the meat

     A vailable evidence indicates that the following aspects of meat j.quality are
unaffected by electrical stunning.

  1. Residual blood in the muscles of sheep and goats is not affected by electrical stunning. However, no comparable studies have been carried out on cattle. [ 11,12,13 ]

  2. PH levels are not affected in animals slaughtered after electrical stunning. [ 14 ]

  3. Petechial haemorrhage in muscles occurs following both electrical stunning and traditional Islamic slaughter methods. A vailable evidence suggests that pre-slaughter stress is the major factor in determining the severity of such haemorrhage.

  1. This section is from to report number WHO-EM/FOS/10-A of the Muslim World League and the World Health Organization committee on electrical stunning of animals. The committee was formed of Dr Muhammad Abdussalam (Chairman), Dr Muhammad al-Habib bin al-Khojah, Dr Muhammad Abdulmunim Abul Facti, Dr Muhammad Hawari (Secretary) and Dr Muhammad Abdelmomene. It held a meeting at the Berlin Institute of Veterinary Medicine during 23-26 Shawwa! 1406 AH/30 June-3 July 1986. The committee commissioned one of its members, Dr Muhammad Abdulmunim Abul FactI, to visit the Animal Physiology Department of the Faculty of Medicine at Edinburgh University, where advanced rescarch was being undertaken on pain and its ccntrcs in thc animal body. His brief was to verify that neither electrical stunning nor subscqucnt slaughter caused the animal any pain or distress. Section 5 gives a summary ofDr Abul Fadl's report.