Day 098 - 07 Mar 95 - Page 45
1 Q. In fact, is there not a specification somewhere that fences
2 or walls must be high enough to prevent the cows from
3 trying to jump over them?
4 A. It could well be a MAFF requirement, I do not know.
5
6 Q. You have said there is a small structure coming out of the
7 stunning box which encourages the animal to keep its head
8 up?
9 A. Yes.
10
11 Q. How long has that been in place?
12 A. Four years ---
13
14 Q. Four years?
15 A. -- guessing.
16
17 Q. Why was that introduced?
18 A. It became a requirement to sort of restrict the head
19 movement in order that -- this was a MAFF enforced thing.
20
21 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Can you keep your voice up, please?
22 A. Sorry, sir.
23
24 Q. It has happened with just about every other witness, apart
25 from yourself, when Ms. Steel is asking questions there is
26 a tendency to turn away, naturally enough.
27 A. OK. The people who inspect or the Ministry of
28 Agriculture started to require that the animal's head was
29 or the movement of the animal's head was restricted in some
30 way in order to facilitate a more accurate stun.
31
32 MS. STEEL: So since then stunning has become more accurate?
33 A. I am not aware that it has become any more accurate
34 since we have done this.
35
36 Q. That was the purpose of it, though?
37 A. It was the theory behind the legislation.
38
39 Q. How much kind of day-to-day involvement have you had with
40 that aspect?
41 A. The stunning?
42
43 Q. Yes.
44 A. It is part of what I do. I mean, I am not down there
45 every day watching it, if that is what you mean. That is
46 left to the OVS or meat inspectors to ensure that is being
47 done correctly.
48
49 Q. Prior to having this structure, did it happen that
50 sometimes the cow did not put its head up so that it was
51 hard to get close enough to fire the cow puncher?
52 A. Not to my knowledge. I mean, it was put in because it
53 was a requirement. We did not particularly, you know, need
54 to have it there ourselves. We found that we were able to
55 stun effectively without it.
56
57 Q. Do you not bother to use it now then? You just have it
58 there and -----
59 A. It is not mechanical, it is just -----
60
