The wording of the headline strongly suggests that, according to the Star, 'Brit kids' are not Muslims', and that Muslims aren't really British. The Star have often made this point about 'us and them', with 'them' being Muslims:
or immigrants:
Anyway, back to the - ahem - meat of today's story:
Brit kids forced to eat halal school dinners
Furious parents last night hit out at plans to serve halal-only school dinners.
Pupils will have no option but to eat meat slaughtered following Islamic teachings specifically for Muslims.
Use of words such as 'forced' and 'have no option' feed into the tabloid narrative about 'Britain' changing only because of them Muslims.
But the BBC version of the same story has a rather different take on how much this is going to be 'forced' on people:
A north London council is offering its primary schools the chance to serve only halal meat on its menus.
Nine Harrow secondary schools already provide pupils with meat prepared according to Islamic law in a scheme that has been running for two years.
Harrow Council said it had received "no complaints" about serving halal-only meat, with vegetarian and fish options.
Now 52 primary schools in the area will have the option of taking part in the same programme.
Harrow councillor Brian Gate said it would be the choice of individual schools as to whether or not they chose to use catering firm Harrison Catering Services, which serves halal-only meat.
"The decision about whether to use an individual provider is for schools to make, as the funding is delegated to them," Councillor Gate said.
So the schools can use a catering company that provides halal meat if they want or they can choose another firm altogether. (And presumably, kids still have the option of taking packed lunches.)
Yet the Star maintains:
all high schools in the London borough of Harrow have been told to provide only halal meat on menus.
Even the Mail, after covering all the usual 'fury' and 'outrage', admits:
The contract for providing meals to Harrow primaries is up for renewal and the council is planning to bring in Harrison's.
The council says primaries do not have to use its preferred caterer and governors are free to negotiate their own deals if they wish. Only two primaries have so far signed up.
And the local Harrow Observer, which originally broke the story, said:
Harrow Council has employed a catering company to only prepare Halal meat – to serve youngsters in Harrow.
Primary schools are free to opt in to the programme or look elsewhere for their meals
Star hack Gary Nicks fails to mention that it is optional anywhere in the article, thus leaving the completely false impression that it is being 'forced' on pupils.
It doesn't take much to work out why, especially coming so soon after false stories about 'Muslim-only toilets' and the swimming pool 'blacked out' for Muslims.
UPDATE: Harrow Council have issued a statement, in order to counter the false stories. They say:
It is simply not correct that Harrow Council is insisting that its schools serve only Halal meat.
The schools are in full control of decisions relating to school meals and are free to choose who provides this service.
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Pretty much off topic, but halal and kosher meat makes me feel a little sick. But I'm a veggie so that's allowed, right?! ;)
ReplyDeleteThe Union Flag on that case is upside down.
ReplyDeleteerm. Halal is down to the way its killed so to a non Muslim why would it even matter? (unless you had ethical objections I guess but I haven't met many people who will eat meat but only if its non halal - people who object to animals being killed tend to not like the whole lot and be vegetarians)
ReplyDeleteThe biggest irony of the situation is that the kind of readership the Star attracts probably think nothing of buying a donner kebab at the end of a Friday evening...
ReplyDeleteNot knowing enough about Halal, I couldn't comment on its benefits and drawbacks to animals slaughtered that way. As a vegetarian, I can't help suspecting that it - along with kosher slaughter - probably isn't very nice. But when compared to the slackly monitored slaughter techniques of the bulk of intensively farmed British meat, it has certain appeal, which is no doubt ignored by the majority of incensed nugget-eating tabloid readers.
ReplyDeleteInstantaneous death (in a slaughterhouse) versus bleeding to death (halal) I would say that non-halal meat is more humane.
ReplyDeleteWhich is of course all irrelevant when everything is so tasty!
I wouldn't eat halal or kosher meat out of principle due to the way the animal is slaughtered. I'm not vegetarian, so I do eat other meats. I don't deny that this may be hypocritical to some degree. As Anonymous says above, I don't doubt that British slaughter techniques are poorly monitored. However, there are laws in place designed to ensure minimal suffering to the animal. Whether these are enforced correctly is another matter. The fact is, these laws were written with that purpose in mind.
ReplyDeleteHowever, with halal meat, there is no question that the animal has slowly bled to death.
It is my understanding from the featured articles (and please correct me if I'm wrong) that while pupils at the schools will be able to choose from halal meat, fish, or vegetarian meals, there is no non-halal meat option. Why should non-Muslim children be deprived the opportunity to eat meat if they don't subscribe to particular faith-based dietary requirements?
"Why should non-Muslim children be deprived the opportunity to eat meat if they don't subscribe to particular faith-based dietary requirements?"
ReplyDeleteThey aren't deprived of anything, meat is meat right? I also find your principle of not eating Halal meat because the animal suffers pretty ludicrous when you consider the conditions many animals live and die in during any sort of mass slaughter industry. If you give a shit about animals, stop eating them when there's readily available alternatives. In addition, sure there is monitoring on the way Halal meat is produced as well.
And finally, i'm also pretty sure if a pupil (or more likely their parents) at one of these schools actually did have a proper objection to the way Halal meat is produced than an alternative meat dish would be made available to them.
I don't deny that one could argue hypocrisy on my part. I disagree with halal and kosher slaughter yet I eat the meat of animals that may or may not be slaughtered in accordance with rules to minimise suffering. I try to buy free range when I can but that's not necessarily a guarantee, which puts me in a moral quandary. However, the carnivorous/vegetarian debate is an entirely different discussion that has been played out many times.
ReplyDeleteYou say that 'meat is meat' and go on to say that those who object could be specially catered for. Should it not be those with special dietary requirements who can request an alternative dish, whether they be Muslim, Jewish, or of any other faith with such needs?
The main difference between Halal (and Kosher) and non Halal meat is that in the Halal meat, the blood is removed. With non Halal meat, the animal is stunned with an electric shock, and then the animal is slaughtered. There are some reports that say that stunning causes more harm to the animal by looking at the brain wave patterns. However, this is not really the platform to have an argument as to which is better.
ReplyDeleteIt may look more gross to see blood being removed, however, Muslims believe that it is the removal of blood that makes the meat safer.
I think this anger at Halal meat in the papers is just because it is something that Muslims do. I think there is almost no difference between Halal and Kosher meat, other than Kosher meat is more restricted than Halal.
To the man above, halal meat cannot be kept, or prepared on the same premises as non halal meat, so no, it is either halal or non-halal, there is no compromise.
ReplyDelete"I also find your principle of not eating Halal meat because the animal suffers pretty ludicrous when you consider the conditions many animals live and die in during any sort of mass slaughter industry."
Sure, so why doesn't the whole meat industry go back to the old days of slaughtering when suffering wasn't considered? Clearly to you it's much of a muchness, either way the animal dies right, so why all the needless legislation? Incidentally legislation that they halal meat industry is exempt from, along with many others. Standard abattoirs have rigid standards and are routinely inspected, not so with halal slaughter houses, which invariably have poor hygiene and other standards.
Finally those of use that aren't religious do not like the idea of having a needless ritual performed over our food, forcing religion onto others is not how we behave in modern Britain.
I sort of agree with the animal welfare argument against this, however, it's pretty clear that's not what Desmond's papers care about.
ReplyDeleteThe clear implication is that if you eat halal meat you will somehow be contaminated with 'muslim germs' or something.
@Dan -- eating meat is not a right. There are two other options.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if the meat isn't Halal, then what about the choices of those who won't eat non-Halal meat? Then surely the Daily Star headline would read 'BRIT KIDS FORCED TO EAT HARAAM SCHOOL DINNERS'... wouldn't it?
The point is, no one is being forced to do anything, and whatever their religion, they can all be 'Brit' kids.
"Should it not be those with special dietary requirements who can request an alternative dish, whether they be Muslim, Jewish, or of any other faith with such needs?"
ReplyDeleteWell the halal/non-halal options provide the same meal, and I'd wager that most non-muslim people don't have an objection to Halal meat (judging by takeaway queues anyway), while most muslim people probably do have an objection to non-Halal meat. It seems fairly innocuous to go with a supplier that provides meat that everyone wants to eat. Plus I imagine the people who won't eat halal meat are a smaller minority than the ones who will only eat it.
Again though, this is the schools choice, not some goverment mandate. If enough people are against it they won't adopt it.
"Sure, so why doesn't the whole meat industry go back to the old days of slaughtering when suffering wasn't considered? Clearly to you it's much of a muchness, either way the animal dies right, so why all the needless legislation?"
No, I'm saying the difference between halal and non-halal slaughter isn't great enough to get upset about. There seems to be varying accounts of how effective non-halal slaughter is at ending an animals suffering immediatly, maybe you could link me to something defintive about it? Not to sound like a nutty veggie or anything, but I think if you're happy with the practice of animals being bred en masse just to be murdered for food, pontificating about how they should die is pretty redundent.
"not so with halal slaughter houses, which invariably have poor hygiene and other standards."
Can you provide a link about this? I understand they are exempt from having to stun the animal, but it seems very odd that they are allowed to just do whatever they want. I'd also be pretty surprised if a company recommened to supply meals to schools wasn't properly inspected regularly.
It's genuinely nice to actually see an intellectual debate going on here, especially when you see that the tabloid-readers threads tend to consist of bad arguments, swearing and unforgiveable gullibility (if that's even a word). Not to say all tabloid readers are idiots, of course.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, on to the subject of suffering and halal meat. At the end of the day, people are entitled to their choices, and all the better if the people can explain their choices rationally. But it's a free world. I have been pro-animal welfare all of my life, but I am also a budding scientist. Neuroscience is my field, though I also study Biochemistry. Cerebral blood-flow, Brain Function and pain all come under the Neuroscience umbrella, so I believe my knowledge may be able to help here.
I've written it as a blog post, as I felt it would be too long to post here as a comment. Hope it helps, but I must make the point that this isn't telling anybody that they SHOULD or SHOULDN'T eat meat or halal or whatever. It's just evidence, facts and some opinion.
I welcome feedback, just keep it civil, please :) :) :)
http://captain-nitrogen.tumblr.com/post/922539733/halal
Please forgive the rather un-serious title. I get to the point eventually :)
That middle front page promises 'naked Lucy', but she clearly has a thong on. If you can't trust the Star to provide you with naked wenches who are actually naked, what can you trust them on? Shocking.
ReplyDelete'I'd wager that most non-muslim people don't have an objection to Halal meat' - that may well be correct so why not offer a choice.
ReplyDeleteAs for me - I prefer my meat killed without prayers especially if they are of a religion known for it's homophobia and misogyny (and yes I know those terms could be used for most organised religions) I just want my meat to be succulent, secular and preferably stunned before it is killed.
The idea that schools have any choice in the matter is downright silly (unless you mean Hobson's choice). The senior schools are Halal only.
So if you've got poor parents, get free school meals and like a wee bit of meat now and again your choice is ....non-existent. (Or maybe poor people aren't entitled to a choice)
As for packed lunches. Er...not every child wants sandwiches all the time and not every mum (and it's almost always mum) has the time, energy or desire to make a packed lunch every morning - it's hard enough getting the kids to school on time.
I believe there has also been some research suggesting that school lunches are healthier than the packed variety which tend to have lots of the wrong type of food: crisps, biscuits, chocolate spread etc.
Oh and back to choice. The primary schools can choose an alternative supplier if they want. Er...yes! You may not have noticed but primary school staff have better things to do (you know educating children, form-filling, dealing with social workers, organising education plans etc) than sourcing school meal suppliers. School lunches cost about £1.50 - £1.80 a day. Very few catering companies are going to be interested in a single school supply.
Oh and back to choice - there isn't one.
"I'd also be pretty surprised if a company recommened to supply meals to schools wasn't properly inspected regularly."
ReplyDeleteYou're confusing being inspected, to being clean, they are not the same. You'd be amazed at how many food outlets in your area are still serving food with very low Environmental Health ratings. Premises are seldom closed unless it is really, really bad (you'd be amazed at just how bad it has to be), and again don't confuse being acceptable to being clean. Also you are confusing the catering firm (who may very well have an exemplary rating) with the slaughterhouse providing them with the meat. Both are most likely to have been chosen because they are the cheapest, and not because they are the cleanest.
Most (but not all) standard abattoirs in the UK (i.e. non halal) have strict hygiene standards, robust trainings schemes and well trained staff who understand their job, and the need for good hygiene as they are usually run by big companies.
The Halal abattoirs that I have seen do not follow the same high standards, in part due to them usually being smaller, but also because they invariably employ immigrants (as does much of the meat/food packing industry in the UK) who are offered little or no training and frequently don't understand (through no fault of their own) why they should be following hygiene standards, let alone what they are. You'd be amazed at how many believe that a clean knife is all they need.
They are regularly inspected by the FSA, but not being bad enough to close, isn't the same as Exemplary.
My suggestion to you would be to contact your local authority and use the FOI to ask for the reports on your local slaughterhouses, both Halal and non Halal and then compare and contrast and make up your own mind.
If there aren't any Halal abattoirs near you, try Birmingham City Council, as far as I know Birmingham only has Halal abattoirs.
Let me get this straight, based on the evidence provided.
ReplyDelete"Harrow Council said it had received "no complaints" about serving halal-only meat, with vegetarian and fish options."
The pupils at the schools who have opted in therefore have NO CHOICE in eating halal meat - unless they want fish or veggies.
Every Indian/Turkish takeaway in my town uses halal meat. Again - NO CHOICE for the native population. I bet 99% are unaware how their meat is slaughtered, faced towards Mecca.
P.S. The Star is repulsive, I agree.
Every time the tabloids put out a story like this, they make a wedge of cash through idiot-sales, while the people in the affected local council lose money, because they (the council) have to spend time issuing statements.
ReplyDeleteWhen are we going to see financial compensation paid to local authorities when the tabloids put out crap like this?
This is another ridiculous, untrue, racially motivated story.
ReplyDeleteThese reports about Harrow schools are good in that they have prompted a debate about the whole issue of Religiously slaughtered meat entering the main food chain.
ReplyDeleteI live in Harrow and had no idea that our children were eating this meat. I've expressed my concerns to my local councillor and have asked the school to clarify the situation. Many others have too. I suspect that given the furore the days of this meat being served in our schools is numbered.
An exemption to the slaughter laws allows Muslims and Jews to slaughter their meat using this method - it is only meant for consumption by these groups.
Btw in Harrow 7% of the local population are said to be Muslim.
Harrisons have no mention of the word Halal on their website.
I think The British Humanist association have a sensible view on this issue.
We should all be more questioning about where our food comes from - it's very worring when this sort of meat slips into the food chain by the back door. It makes you wonder about hospitals or old peoples homes...