Day 077 - 25 Jan 95 - Page 50


     
     1        it is engraved on your heart -- says:  "Young fed animals
     2        are cattle that exhibit carcass maturity and quality that
     3        will give the patties a mild beef flavour".  Are you
     4        allowed to use anything other than young fed animals ---
     5        A.  No.
     6
     7   Q.   -- for McDonald's food?
     8        A.  No.
     9
    10   Q.   What is a young fed animal?
    11        A.  In the steer and the heifer, it is about two years old;
    12        in a shop cow it can be up to three years old; in a SYB, a
    13        special young bull, it can be up to two years old.
    14
    15   Q.   What is a special young bull?
    16        A.  It is an entire bull that has not been castrated.
    17
    18   Q.   Does there come a time when an entire bull becomes
    19        unacceptable for use as a McDonald's meat source?
    20        A.  Very much so after two, two and a half years of age.
    21
    22   Q.   What is the reason?
    23        A.  It becomes staggy and strong.
    24
    25   Q.   In taste?
    26        A.  In flavour and taste.
    27
    28   Q.   In flavour.  Taking this alone for the moment, we will come
    29        to the other parts of paragraph 9 in a moment, what
    30        possibility is there then that Mr. North saw what he says
    31        he saw, namely, old cow meat?
    32        A.  Well, you see, he says, and I quote:  "I judge that
    33        much of the meat observed (I saw what must have been
    34        several tonnes) had been derived from old cows.  I noted
    35        flank and diaphragm (skirt) to be the bulk of the meat".
    36
    37   Q.   Tell us what is wrong with that?
    38        A.  Well, he did not see any old cows, and all the flanks
    39        he saw were not cow flanks, they were steer and heifer
    40        flanks.  We never buy cow flanks.  Furthermore, skirts are
    41        trimmed out at the time of dressing in the abattoirs, and
    42        skirts are not allowed in the McDonald's spec..  He was
    43        looking at steer and heifer flanks, not cow flanks, and he
    44        did not see any skirts.
    45
    46   Q.   Is there anything in what he could have seen that he might
    47        have mistaken for a diaphragm or skirt?
    48        A.  Well, not if he knew his meat, no, there is not.  If he
    49        knew his meat, he would not make the mistake.
    50 
    51   Q.   Is your observation about this paragraph is that he does 
    52        not know his meat? 
    53        A.  Yes.
    54
    55   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Could I just ask, you supply people other
    56        than McDonald's?
    57        A.  Yes, sir.
    58
    59   Q.   Do you supply any beef from old cows or any skirt to other
    60        customers of yours?

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