Nick Clegg today said he had “no problem” eating halal meat but it should be clearly labelled so people know what they are buying.
The Deputy Prime Minister said shoppers should be given the information in case they have concerns, such as whether animals were stunned before slaughter.
“I personally do not have a problem eating a pizza with halal meat on it at all,” he told his Call Clegg show on LBC radio. It follow revelations that restaurants and supermarkets are selling halal meat without telling consumers. It is controversial because a minority of halal slaughterhouses do not stun animals before they are killed by having their throats slit.
Mr Clegg said that in an era of detailed food labelling, “it’s just a question of making sure that when people buy something from a supermarket or Pizza Express they are given basic information ... I don’t think people are throwing up their hands in rejection of halal meat as such. Consumers want to know more about how the food arrived on their plate”.
Muslim and Jewish leaders have backed the call for consumers to be told more on labels and menus.
Many schools and hospitals have switched to halal meat because it is inconvenient to have separate supplies. This week, media reports revealed Pizza Express only uses halal chicken but the information is not on menus. More than 70 per cent of New Zealand lamb in supermarkets is from halal abattoirs. Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Waitrose and Marks & Spencer all sell the imported meat.
