Day 067 - 15 Dec 94 - Page 08
1 specifications.
2
3 Q. Right, so if a supplier is not meeting those
4 specifications, you would still take them on if you thought
5 that at some stage in the future they were going to make
6 improvements?
7 A. Let me clarify one thing. Our specifications in
8 relation to the welfare of animals are based on the Humane
9 Slaughter Act. Those are guidelines, those are very
10 subjective guidelines, and if you focus on any particular
11 event you would reach the wrong conclusion. We like to
12 take the approach that we look at the total welfare of the
13 animal. That is very easy to estimate. If an animal has
14 no access to water he will obviously die -- we can only use
15 that. So, I do not know what -- maybe I do not understand
16 your question but .....
17
18 Q. The animals in Moscow, I think it was, the animals used in
19 Moscow, were not given water or did not have water
20 available while they were waiting for slaughter?
21 A. I was not there. I have not seen the Russian
22 operations, but if that is the case I cannot speculate on
23 something that I have not seen.
24
25 Q. You talked about it yesterday.
26 A. I talk based on the documents that were presented.
27 I never said that I had been in Russia. No, I did not, and
28 the transcript will support that.
29
30 Q. You recognised that they had filled out the form saying
31 they did not provide water while the animals were waiting
32 for slaughter.
33
34 MR. RAMPTON: No, my Lord, he did not say that. This is the
35 trouble unless the witness is shown the document. It may
36 not make much difference but what the question was, in
37 fact: "Do animals have access to clean drinking water?"
38 Answer: "No".
39
40 MS. STEEL: Is that a specification of the Humane Slaughter
41 Act?
42 A. That comes from the guidelines from the Humane
43 Slaughter Act.
44
45 Q. I think you implied that you had incorporated the Humane
46 Slaughter Act or its equivalent into your specifications?
47 A. Into the -- that is correct.
48
49 Q. Right. The supplier in Moscow is not providing clean
50 drinking water for the animals waiting for slaughter, so is
51 that not in contravention of your specifications?
52 A. Let me answer again. Those are guidelines. It is not
53 a violation of our specification if they deviate slightly
54 from it. To answer directly your question, no, it is not.
55
56 Q. So all of those things that are on those charts, are they
57 all just guidelines; they are not actual specifications?
58 A. May I ask you what is your definition of our
59 specification, your understanding?
60
