Day 088 - 13 Feb 95 - Page 49


     
     1   Q.   The Freedom Food document, yes, and the very last
     2        paragraph: "J.3.12:  BSF Standard:  Pig handlers and
     3        slaughtermen must have completed an approved training
     4        course".  Do your people complete approved training
     5        courses?
     6        A.  Yes, they do.  If I may just explain?
     7
     8   Q.   Please?
     9        A.  How that is accomplished.  We have a training officer
    10        and every person that works in our plant has to go through
    11        a training procedure and hygiene procedure of basic hygiene
    12        and he is also responsible for the welfare of the animals,
    13        but he is a training officer so the person appointed in the
    14        lairage has to be approved and certificated by our training
    15        officer.  Likewise, our people handle the pigs at the
    16        stunning end and his training was done at the MLC Bristol
    17        University or Meat Research Institute courses which they
    18        have run and we actually had our two men.  Our
    19        slaughterhouse manager went also and they were actually on
    20        the first course and both passed.
    21
    22   Q.   So does that mean that these personnel are not, in fact,
    23        trained by the training courses operated by the Humane
    24        Slaughter Association?
    25        A.  No, but the Humane Slaughter Association actually is
    26        involved with the MLC and Bristol and actually
    27        documentation that is issued from that course does have
    28        input from the Humane Slaughter Association.
    29
    30   Q.   Is your company a member of the Humane Slaughter
    31        Association?
    32        A.  No, we are not.
    33
    34   Q.   Do you have any contact with the Humane Slaughter
    35        Association?
    36        A.  Yes, we do.  We have quite close contact.  They have
    37        used us for a number of years because they have known that
    38        we have been looking at different systems, and we have
    39        worked quite closely with them in development, at times our
    40        technical team have, and we have every respect for what
    41        they do.
    42
    43   Q.   Mr. Bowes, thank you.  Please remain there for
    44        cross-examination.
    45
    46
    47
    48   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Before Ms. Steel or Mr. Morris ask you
    49        questions, Mr. Bowes, you said that the stun and stick line
    50        of 18 seconds did not concern you under your circumstances 
    51        of stunning.  What did you mean by that? 
    52        A.  If you recall, sir, I did explain how we believed that 
    53        our pigs are dead.
    54
    55   Q.   I thought you meant that but I wanted to check?
    56        A.  And I believe that Dr. Gregory confirmed that.
    57
    58   Q.   On page 16, just after the part Mr. Rampton referred you
    59        to, it said:  "In the case of electro narcosis, the minimum
    60        route means square current level during stunning must be

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