Day 078 - 26 Jan 95 - Page 46
1 outside the United States, of purchasing beef only from
2 within countries where the restaurants operate."
3
4 You were not aware of that policy?
5 A. Yes, I think I was aware of it.
6
7 Q. Since they expanded outside the United States?
8 A. Yes, but I know, I mean, I am aware of that policy,
9 yes.
10
11 Q. But you were buying beef from outside the countries where
12 the restaurants operate?
13 A. Well, if you are saying I am buying beef within the
14 EEC, yes, we have one European market.
15
16 Q. I will carry on.
17
18 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Can I just make a point to you about this?
19 I understand that your point, or part of it, is that
20 McDonald's say they have a policy which is such and such,
21 and they rely upon that in part in support of their
22 contention that they have not taken rainforest beef.
23 Therefore, I understand that you say it is relevant to see
24 whether that policy is kept to. But once you have got a
25 bit of information about that, I really wonder how much
26 further you can go with a witness such as this. One still
27 has to look to see what evidence there is, if any, that
28 McDonald's have taken beef from land which has been
29 rainforest and, if so, how long ago before one sees what,
30 if any, conclusions one can draw of the kind you are going
31 to invite me to.
32
33 So what I would suggest is, it is a point which I am very
34 conscious that I should have made earlier when Mr. Morris
35 was asking questions, there has to be a limit on how far we
36 go on explorations as to whether there has been a breach of
37 any policy, which breach does not in itself actually
38 involve getting beef from rainforest areas. That is my
39 feeling at the moment.
40
41 You have a number of answers from which you are going to
42 ask me to infer that if there was a policy it was breached
43 from time to time, but once we have got that far, what
44 I have got to be casting around for is to see what the
45 evidence was that McDonald's actually got beef from
46 rainforest or ex-rainforest areas when they say they never
47 did, or subject to what you pointed out in Mr. Cesca's
48 statement.
49
50 MS. STEEL: I am just trying to clarify, if there is a policy
51 what it is supposed to be.
52
53 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I am not sure ----
54
55 MS. STEEL: I have just one question I wanted to ask.
56
57 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Ask that question, but my view at the moment
58 is that you asked Mr. Oakley about this. No doubt, you
59 will ask Mr. Cesca about it. You may ask others who work
60 for McDonald's. How far Mr. Walker can you help beyond the
