Day 288 - 28 Oct 96 - Page 29


     
     1        contrast with that, they then go on to say that they will
     2        demonstrate the company believes in the humane treatment of
     3        animals - "McDonald's will only deal with suppliers who
     4        meet the highest standards of animal welfare and only EC
     5        approved abattoirs are used".
     6
     7        We say it is not a lie to say that McDonald's is
     8        responsible for torturing/slaughtering animals and that
     9        whether McDonald's can demonstrate -- well, McDonald's
    10        cannot argue against that, because, as we have heard, their
    11        animals go through the typical conditions in the industry
    12        which are the only protection apparently, is the law, for
    13        welfare standards.
    14
    15   MS. STEEL:  I am going to start on chickens, but I have to say
    16        that I was having quite a few computer problems this
    17        morning and I have not got all the notes that I had made in
    18        relation to Dr. Gregory.  I have not got any of the notes
    19        that I made for him.
    20
    21   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Do you have them on a floppy disk, something
    22        of that kind?
    23
    24   MS. STEEL:   Yes.  Unfortunately the computer crashed.  I did
    25        not lose everything, but it is not now in a form which is
    26        not kind of very -- it does not run, it is not smooth.
    27
    28   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I am not concerned about that.  What I am
    29        concerned about is, I do not care what order they come out,
    30        I can jiggle that around myself.  What I want to know,
    31        essentially, is what you say, just to use ordinary
    32        language, amounts to a cruel practice with regard to
    33        chickens.  I do not mind if you start with slaughter and
    34        then go back to maceration of chicks or to carbon dioxide
    35        and then go on to the way they are picked up when they are
    36        cropped as long as you give me, just point me at, the items
    37        of what you say are the incidents of cruelty and then, in
    38        so far as you have got a note of what someone said, the day
    39        and page reference and the name of a witness.
    40
    41        What I suggest you do is get on as best you can with what
    42        you have got with you.  If you have got something on a
    43        floppy disk but it is a printing problem, I can solve that.
    44
    45   MS. STEEL:   I have not got it with me.  I have it at home.  I
    46        had time to print some of the stuff out but not other
    47        parts.  It was completely chaotic.  The first point which I
    48        have not got a reference for, actually, is the fact that we
    49        have heard in court that 27 million chickens are reared
    50        every year in Europe to supply meat to McDonald's for the 
    51        McChicken McNuggets and McChicken sandwiches, and that is 
    52        by Sun Valley who are a Cargill subsidiary.  Approximately 
    53        one fifth of Sun Valley's turnover is devoted to, or is
    54        obtained from, McDonald's custom.  That was day 89, page 5,
    55        line 58.
    56
    57        So McDonald's can hardly claim not to have any influence,
    58        or, you know, they have obviously got vast amounts of
    59        buying power, and if they were so minded they could
    60        stipulate to Sun Valley that Sun Valley should use more

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