What PETA Really Asked For

What follows are excerpts from PETA's November 29, 2004 letter to Rabbi Menachem Genack, head of the OU's Kashrut Division. [Emphasis usually mine.] Please notice that PETA assumes that the OU already follows humane slaughter practicies, and that the Rubashkin/Postville situation is an abberation:

[W]e encourage the OU to conduct a thorough audit of its own systems of supervision and personnel-monitoring capabilities to prevent a similar debacle. We also urge the OU to require that AgriProcessors make the necessary policy and procedural changes to live up to the legal, humane, and kosher standards required of an OU-certified company and to remove the OU hechser from this operation if AgriProcessors is not willing to reform.

Finally and most importantly, we recommend that the OU issue an official policy statement on Tsaar Baalei Chayim to all slaughterhouses that it certifies and that included in that policy there be a pledge to certify only companies that have adopted the following humane methods to prevent the abysmal treatment of animals that was witnessed at AgriProcessors:

• Recommendation #1: Make explicit what is surely already an OU requirement, that no animals shall be touched after shechita until after they are dead. As discussed above, the dismembering of the animals seconds after the shochet’s initial cut while the animal is still fully conscious clearly violates the humane intent and letter of Jewish law.

• Recommendation #2: End the use of the Facoima pen or other inverted restraining devices, and instead, adopt a more humane, upright pen. The ASPCA pen, recommended by Temple Grandin, keeps conscious animals restrained upright at all times and is in accordance with strict kosher requirements. As you probably know, the Facoima pen is illegal in the United Kingdom, based on humane considerations.

• Recommendation #3: Require that animals always be kept inside the restraining device until they are unconscious. Again, animals should be allowed to die undisturbed after shechita, as moving them after shechita while they are still conscious is both terrifying and cruel. Humane slaughter regulations in the United Kingdom, including kosher slaughter, require that cattle not be moved prior to unconsciousness and never be moved within 30 seconds of shechita.

• Recommendation #4: Institute a policy that requires animals who are not rapidly rendered unconscious by shechita, as required by law, to be immediately rendered unconscious with a captive-bolt gun. While this may mean that the animal’s carcass would not qualify as kosher, we understand that all kosher processing facilities already process a significant amount of meat as nonkosher to sell to their nonkosher customer base, and it is estimated that at any kosher slaughterhouse, between 40 and 80 percent of all animals already do not meet kosher requirements.

• Recommendation #5: Make explicit and enforce what we believe you already have—a ban on the use of electric prods. In the footage, we witnessed the use of electric prods on numerous cows, contrary to kosher restrictions, including some being prodded in the face to maneuver their heads into position while they were in the restraining device. It may be that your current ban on this process has not been communicated effectively enough to the plants that you certify, since no plants should have electric prods available to them if they are not allowed to be used.

The full text of the letter can be found after the jump.

November 29, 2004
Rabbi Menachem Genack
Rabbinic Administrator
Kashrut Division
Orthodox Union

Dear Rabbi Genack:

We write today with evidence of cruelty to animals and what we believe to be egregious halachic violations of the laws of shechita at the AgriProcessors slaughterhouse in Postville, Iowa. I think you will see that this facility, certified under the supervision of the Orthodox Union (OU), compromises the integrity of your esteemed hashgacha.

The footage that we obtained during our recent investigation at AgriProcessors, excerpts of which are included on the enclosed videotape, shows that the animals at this facility routinely have their tracheas and esophagi ripped from their necks just seconds after shechita, while they are still alive and fully conscious, and then struggle to their feet, in agony for up to three minutes after this dismemberment. This violates both the Humane Methods of Livestock Slaughter Act (HMLSA) and the most fundamental halachic laws pertaining to shechita. The HMLSA requires that cattle be “rendered insensible to pain” before they are shackled, hoisted, or cut. Kosher law requires that the “trachea and esophagus of the animal are severed with a special razor-sharp, perfectly smooth blade, causing instantaneous death with no pain to the animal” (The Orthodox Union).

The chief rabbi of Haifa, Rabbi Shear-Yashuv Cohen, reviewed our footage and issued the following statement about these procedures: "Judging by the video film that you have shown me, the procedure of this shekhita is definitely unacceptable by halakhic standards. I was surprised to see that immediately after the shochet makes the cut, a worker who is probably not Jewish jumps to the animal and tears away its entire throat. Also, I was surprised to see that even after that brutal act, the animal seems to still be alive and walked a few steps, and then it took about four minutes until it fell down and died.

This procedure is not only cruel and therefore unacceptable by Jewish religious law. It also cannot be certified as kosher, as the animal must die as the direct result of the ritual cut. And a shokhet (= ritual slaughterer) has to check it to ascertain that this is indeed what has happened."

The former chief rabbi of Ireland and international director of inter-religious affairs for The American Jewish Committee, Rabbi David Rosen, also reviewed the video and offered this opinion: "The manner of the slaughtering of animals as well of animal treatment generally as shown in this video, involves flagrant violation of Jewish halachic (religious legal) requirements. I join my greatly respected colleague Chief Rabbi Shear Yashuv Cohen in declaring that such behaviour desecrates Jewish teaching and values and the meat of the animals abused in this way is rendered totally non-kosher as a result."

It is almost too obvious to state that dismembering animals while they are still conscious causes extreme pain and suffering and should never be practiced. Dr. Temple Grandin, a recognized expert in all aspects of slaughter of farmed animals, including kosher slaughter, and advisor to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and American Meat Institute, viewed the footage and commented that she had never come across this “atrocious” procedure in any of the 30 kosher slaughterhouses that she has visited. She concluded the following: "Removal of the trachea and other internal parts before the animal has become insensible would cause great suffering and pain. Many of the cattle on this tape had this dressing procedure performed when they were still fully sensible. Several cattle were walking around with the trachea and other parts hanging out of them. To provide an acceptable level of welfare, the animals MUST be allowed to become fully insensible after shehita before any dressing procedure is done … ALL cattle must be completely insensible before trachea removal or any other skinning procedure is conducted. Shehita (religious slaughter) is the ONLY procedure that can be conducted on a sensible animal. … In conclusion, many of the cattle that had their trachea removed were fully conscious and fully sensible. The duration of complete sensibility was probably prolonged by the pain of having their inner tissues cut and pulled … "

These practices were neither isolated incidents nor could they be attributed to an individual, incompetent shochet; these were the standard operating procedures for all cattle slaughtered at this plant. We cannot understand how the plant can have gotten OU certification, and we will not attempt to speculate. However, we encourage the OU to conduct a thorough audit of its own systems of supervision and personnel-monitoring capabilities to prevent a similar debacle.

We also urge the OU to require that AgriProcessors make the necessary policy and procedural changes to live up to the legal, humane, and kosher standards required of an OU-certified company and to remove the OU hechser from this operation if AgriProcessors is not willing to reform.

Finally and most importantly, we recommend that the OU issue an official policy statement on Tsaar Baalei Chayim to all slaughterhouses that it certifies and that included in that policy there be a pledge to certify only companies that have adopted the following humane methods to prevent the abysmal treatment of animals that was witnessed at AgriProcessors:

Recommendation #1: Make explicit what is surely already an OU requirement, that no animals shall be touched after shechita until after they are dead.

As discussed above, the dismembering of the animals seconds after the shochet’s initial cut while the animal is still fully conscious clearly violates the humane intent and letter of Jewish law.

Recommendation #2: End the use of the Facoima pen or other inverted restraining devices, and instead, adopt a more humane, upright pen.
The ASPCA pen, recommended by Temple Grandin, keeps conscious animals restrained upright at all times and is in accordance with strict kosher requirements. As you probably know, the Facoima pen is illegal in the United Kingdom, based on humane considerations.

Recommendation #3: Require that animals always be kept inside the restraining device until they are unconscious. Again, animals should be allowed to die undisturbed after shechita, as moving them after shechita while they are still conscious is both terrifying and cruel. Humane slaughter regulations in the United Kingdom, including kosher slaughter, require that cattle not be moved prior to unconsciousness and never be moved within 30 seconds of shechita.

Recommendation #4: Institute a policy that requires animals who are not rapidly rendered unconscious by shechita, as required by law, to be immediately rendered unconscious with a captive-bolt gun.
While this may mean that the animal’s carcass would not qualify as kosher, we understand that all kosher processing facilities already process a significant amount of meat as nonkosher to sell to their nonkosher customer base, and it is estimated that at any kosher slaughterhouse, between 40 and 80 percent of all animals already do not meet kosher requirements.

Recommendation #5: Make explicit and enforce what we believe you already have—a ban on the use of electric prods.
In the footage, we witnessed the use of electric prods on numerous cows, contrary to kosher restrictions, including some being prodded in the face to maneuver their heads into position while they were in the restraining device. It may be that your current ban on this process has not been communicated effectively enough to the plants that you certify, since no plants should have electric prods available to them if they are not allowed to be used.
We hope that by urgently bringing this footage to your attention, this will help you to quickly resolve the shameful situation at AgriProcessors and to ensure that if similar cases of cruelty are occurring in other OU plants, they are promptly cleaned up.
If we can be of any further help to you, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Should you wish to meet to discuss this matter in greater detail, please let me know as soon as possible. I can be reached at […] or via email at […].

Sincerely,

T. Ronnen

Comments

[FNULNU]

PETA will file another complaint against kosher slaughterhouse

By Associated Press

DES MOINES (AP) — An animal rights organization is calling on Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Patty Judge to begin legal proceedings against a kosher slaughterhouse in Postville.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, alleges that Agriprocessors Inc. has violated state law that requires the use of humane methods of slaughter. The organization planned to file a formal complaint today.

“Again and again, when we pull back the curtain on slaughterhouses and factory farms, we find a level of abuse that would make most people lose their lunch,” PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk said in a news release issued Sunday.

Secretary Judge wasn’t available for comment over the weekend, said Machelle Shaffer, a spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Agriculture.

PETA filed a complaint Wednesday with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which helps oversee the plant, calling for the prosecution of Agriprocessors and the Orthodox Union, an international kosher certification agency.

PETA’s move comes after a seven-week undercover investigation at the Postville plant which employs about 700 workers. It is the world’s largest glatt kosher slaughterhouse. Glatt, under kosher law, means that the animals are free of certain physical defects.

During slaughter at the plant, rabbis use a 2-foot blade to cut across the neck of the animal, severing the arteries on both sides and the trachea and esophagus. A second cut is made to each artery to ensure rapid blood loss as a second rabbi stands by to monitor, company officials have said.

Kosher slaughter requires that the animal’s throat is slit. The sudden and enormous blood loss triggers immediate anemia in the brain, which renders the animal insensible.

PETA charges that undercover video made at the slaughterhouse shows improperly executed kosher slaughter resulting “in the mutilation of fully conscious cows.” Some cows were bellowing up to three minutes after their throats were slit, the organization said.

Agriprocessors officials have said the process for slaughtering animals at the plant strictly adheres to federal guidelines and is overseen by rabbinic leaders committed to humane treatment.

Officials with the Orthodox Union have said they’re reviewing the 30-minute videotape, but that it is important to remember that the video covered only selected moments over a seven-week period in which 18,000 cattle were slaughtered.

[D]

OT

In the comments to this post you state the following:

"D," even a cursory look at http://www.FailedMessiah.com disproves much of what you are claiming. I have interviewed a half-dozen of the major players in this, have a background in kashrut and shechita supervision, have worked for several different kashrut orgs including the OU, and also have a journalism background.

If you don't like all the publicity surrounding this scandal – and it is a scandal – the addresses to complain to can easily be found. Here are the names. Look them up:

1. The OU
2. KAJ
3. UMK
4. The Crown Heights Beit Din
5. Margareten
6. Kehilla Kosher (LA)
7. Agudath Israel
8. Nathan Lewin
9. AgriProcessors
10. The Rubashkin family.
(end quote, why no blockquote tags allowed?)

No, Shmarya. A cursory look around here reveals a man on a mission. This site apparently began as an expression of your hostility to the world of Lubavitch. Lately, it has morphed into criticism of those associated with them.I realize that you consider yourself providing a public service on this matter. Unfortunately, that is only partly true; your facts may be good and very complete but your overarching charged tone of language reveals a very strong bias.

In the current shechita matter you have been highlighting the stories that paint Agrip., the OU, KAJ, etc. negatively and softpedaling those that show the opposite. Do not think this has gone unnoticed. It does impact your credibility as a neutral observer. For some reason I suspect you would not be so sanctimonious if the offending schlachthaus were run by a prominent family descended from another Chassidishe Chotzer or from Litvishe stock. FWIW, your expertise at journalism shows through in your published interviews although I would like to know if, when you called R. Belsky, you revealed yourself as the publisher of this blog or claimed to be a member of some other media outlet. It would be Geneivas ha'Daas if the latter were true, BTW.

You have been whoring your site, links and unsolicited monotone comments all over the J-blogosphere in a campaign of "Pay attention to me! Pay attention to me!". When your positions are reasonably countered, even when you are not addressed directly, you engage in ad hominem personal attacks on that individual and scream your way to "victory". To an observer this behavior is little less than obsessive.

FWIW, the publicity surrounding this scandal, and I agree with you that it is a scandal, is unfortunate but necessary. That said, as an individual kosher consumer I am very interested in a satisfactory resolution that recognizes recent developments in animal science and reclaims the "most humane" title for kosher shechita. I am not interested in apportioning blame and singling out individuals or groups for public opprobrium. That you do so on your site is unfortunate and is a black eye on us all.

[Shmarya]

Really?

I have left a link to this blog on this issue perhaps 3 or 4 times in the 8 days this story has been public. Furthermore, I have linked to and excerpted every story (or very similar sory) about this issue and I have interviewed more than a half dozen of its major players. You neither know what information I have gained through those interviews or how I will write this story when my research is done. as for my 'anti-Chabad' bias, 1. I encourage everyone to read the information linked under the Rebbe's picture at the top left of this page. 2. I am vey clear about where I am coming from. 3. In the first 36 mours of this scandal, I assumed PETA was being malicious. It was only after I saw the video that I changed my mind. In those first 36 hours I worked to get out the story – a story I had been led to believe SUPPORTED Rubashkin.

'D,' YOUR very clear bias is showing.

[Shmarya]

Oooooops. The link is ABOVE the Rebbe's picture.

[Yaakov]

It seems to me as well that important issues are being raised by this scandal, but they are being obfuscated by the somewhat hysterical ad hominem tone of the arguments. In other words, you'd have more credibilty if you tone things down a bit and recognize that Rabbis Belsky and Genack are honorable people who are just as concerned about making this "right" as any of us -- and they also happen to be much greater talmidei chachamim than all of us put together.
So, keep up your advocacy, but tone it down, my friend.

[Avi]

Check out my blog for the Conservative movement's take on this scandal.