Day 019 - 27 Jul 94 - Page 59
1 I am sorry if I gave the wrong impression.
2 Q. No, it might be my imperfect recall or my misunderstanding
at the time. Anyway, whatever you said yesterday, your
3 position is that dislocations of the leg are more likely
leaving Sun Valley than arriving at the processing plant?
4 A. Yes, leaving the farm I think.
5 MR. RAMPTON: My Lord, it is not Dr. Gregory's fault. I
hesitate to say it, but it may be a failure in your
6 Lordship's recollection. The relevant passage is at page
17.
7
MR. JUSTICE BELL: Just read it out.
8
MR. RAMPTON: I was drawing attention to the review which
9 Dr. Gregory and Dr. Austin have done in 1992 of birds dead
on arrival at, amongst other places, Sun Valley which is
10 tab K of the orange bundle. I asked: "If we go over
column F Sun Valley we get as compared with the others the
11 relatively tiny figure of 6 per cent. This was for
dislocated or broken hips." I asked: How is it the
12 chickens have their hips dislocated or broken before they
arrive at the slaughterhouse?" Dr. Gregory gave an answer
13 which I had not anticipated. I then said: "Perhaps I did
not ask my question very well. What, in your view, is the
14 likeliest cause or causes?" Dr. Gregory: "Right, when the
birds are caught by the personnel that go into the shed
15 they crouch down and they grab each bird individually by
one leg, they bunch a number of birds held by one leg into
16 one hand. They do the same for the opposite hand."
17 MR. JUSTICE BELL: That is all I need. Thank you very much.
18 MS. STEEL: Right. Actually that is helpful because that was
the bit I was trying to clarify. Where it is talking
19 about 6 per cent, that is talking about the dead on
arrivals, is it not?
20 A. That is correct.
21 Q. So that would not be the total number of birds that were
injured during the loading process?
22 A. That is correct. Some birds would go live on to the
line although they are injured.
23
Q. You do not have any knowledge what that figure might be?
24 A. Not for Sun Valley. For other plants we have a little
bit of information but it is not detailed.
25
MR. JUSTICE BELL: The reason they pick them, carry them by one
26 leg rather than two is just you can hold more birds in one
hand, is it?
27 A. That is correct.
28 MS. STEEL: So they can be loaded faster?
A. That is correct.
29
Q. Do you know roughly in comparison what -- you said you had
30 a little bit of knowledge about the number of birds that
might be injured but you have nothing specifically. Can
