Day 291 - 31 Oct 96 - Page 21


     
     1   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   Yes.
     2
     3   MS. STEEL:   Before I go on to Dr. Long, can I just remind the
     4        court about the fact that in May 1994 McDonald's made a
     5        formal admission in this case that McDonald's suppliers,
     6        McKey Food Services, are supplied with beef from, amongst
     7        others, ABP Limited at Brisworth (not Wellingborough), and
     8        that ABP Limited used the captive bolt pistol to stun the
     9        cattle prior to slaughter.  I am not sure, I can't remember
    10        where the reference for this is, but Dr. Gregory did say at
    11        some stage during his evidence that suppliers in general
    12        felt that using more effective higher stunning currents
    13        would affect meat quality and also that slower killing
    14        lines, which would allow increased accuracy, would affect
    15        profits.  I will try and find the reference for that.
    16
    17   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   Yes.  (Pause).
    18
    19   MS. STEEL:   Sorry.  I just wanted to particularly ask that you
    20        read towards the end of Dr. Gregory's evidence.  On day 18,
    21        I think from about page 74 onwards, there was a whole
    22        section about the Farm Animal Welfare Council report of
    23        1984, the one that is mentioned in the London Greenpeace
    24        fact sheet, about the improvements that have occurred in
    25        the meat industry towards the welfare of animals since that
    26        report was published, or, more specifically, since 1990
    27        when the Codes of Practice, which were based upon that
    28        report, came into being, and that that be taken into
    29        consideration when assessing the likely situation at the
    30        time of the alleged libel.  I.e., basically, that
    31        conditions would have been worse then than they are now.
    32        I think there was something like 114 recommendations which
    33        were referred to in that report in order to improve the
    34        welfare of animals being slaughtered.
    35
    36   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   Yes.
    37
    38   MS. STEEL:   OK.  Going through Dr. Long's evidence on cattle,
    39        just before I do that, just to remind you that Dr. Long
    40        said that -----
    41
    42   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   I will read it again, but I have actually
    43        got a specific note on that point with the reference day
    44        18, page 74 and following pages.
    45
    46   MS. STEEL:   Right.  Thank you.  Dr. Long had considerable
    47        experience of the farming and slaughter process.  He said
    48        he had visited hundreds of farms and markets, a
    49        considerable number of slaughter houses, that he had
    50        contributed evidence to the RSPCA, Ministry of Agriculture 
    51        Fisheries and Food and to the Farm Animal Welfare Council, 
    52        and that was evidence which had been invited from those 
    53        bodies.  I will go through it in the order I have got it
    54        in, which is not necessarily the best order.  It is the
    55        chronological order.
    56
    57        On day 113, page 9, line 20, he referred to the fact that
    58        on the kind of animal rescue farm that he was involved with
    59        they had cows that were 25 years old, and obviously that is
    60        relevant to be taken into consideration when compared with

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