Day 288 - 28 Oct 96 - Page 23


     
     1        is utterly indifferent to the welfare of the animals.  We
     2        consider that it would be viewed as torture if humans were
     3        kept in those conditions and that we are therefore entitled
     4        to the view that it is also torture for animals.  (Pause)
     5
     6        Can I just make a further point about the utter
     7        indifference of the Plaintiffs, which is that in the High
     8        Levels magazine which is produced by McDonald's Restaurants
     9        Limited in this country for, I believe, management grade
    10        and above, but certainly for head office big wigs, so it is
    11        not a public document.  This is document number 15.
    12        I think it was in the very last list of Defendants'
    13        documents that was served in all the stuff about the
    14        counterclaim.
    15
    16        On page 6 of that document - this seems to have been
    17        produced in 1994 - there is a section on cementing
    18        relations.  Well, it is entitled Cementing Relations and it
    19        says that the first annual suppliers conference took place
    20        at the beginning of the year at Brockett Hall in
    21        Hertfordshire with two clear aims; one to cement relations
    22        between our corporate officers and our suppliers; and two,
    23        to finalise plans for business development for 1994 and
    24        beyond.  And it discusses a presentation covered by the
    25        quality assurance department.
    26
    27   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  It mentions ----
    28
    29   MS. STEEL:   Sorry, it covered their goals.  And it was
    30        presented by Barbara Crawford who is from that department.
    31        It says in the second column:  Barbara herself will be
    32        looking at areas which we did not get too involved with in
    33        the past - animal welfare, crop production methods, genetic
    34        engineering of both plants and animals and food
    35        legislation, which is a great time consumer.
    36
    37        We would say that is a clear admission that it is only very
    38        recently, in the past couple of years, that McDonald's have
    39        made any effort to get involved with the animal welfare of
    40        the animals reared for their products, and that effectively
    41        the only reason they have done that is because of the
    42        amount of pressure that they have been under from the
    43        animal rights movement, facing widespread public criticism,
    44        and that more than likely this is probably just another
    45        thing that they are going to use for propaganda purposes.
    46
    47        But, at any rate, it is an admission that they have not got
    48        very involved with animal welfare in the past and certainly
    49        that would have been the case in 1989/1990 when the fact
    50        sheet which we are being sued over was allegedly 
    51        distributed. 
    52 
    53        Do you need me to find the bundle that that is in?   I
    54        could probably do it.
    55
    56   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  No.  I, in fact, remember the article and I
    57        am confident I will find it.  As I have said before, if
    58        there are particular documents or pages of documents that I
    59        am having difficulty finding as I write my judgment, I will
    60        ask Mr. Glenn to write and get them identified then.

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