This is the email I had from Waitrose
Our priority when sourcing all our meat is to achieve the very highest standards of animal welfare and, to ensure this, we work closely with the Humane Slaughter Association (HSA). We also make sure that everything we do is in line with the recommendations of Compassion in World Farming and the RSPCA.
Our lamb is electrically stunned before slaughter, meaning that animals are unconscious and are not subjected to pain.
UK law currently permits halal slaughter both with stunning and without however, to maintain Red Tractor assurance scheme standards, signified by a logo on the label, (which all Waitrose Meat & Poultry achieves) all animals must be pre-stunned. New Zealand law also requires all animals to be pre-stunned at slaughter.
To give our customers a choice our Duchy Originals from Waitrose lamb and the English, West Country & Dorset lamb sold on our service counters are not slaughtered with a halal blessing. All other Waitrose meat and poultry is non-halal.
However, we will continue to allow the halal blessing for other lamb (with the exception of the aforementioned Duchy Originals from Waitrose and the English, West Country & Dorset lamb sold on our service counters) so that abattoirs can sell the parts of the carcass that we don't use to other markets. This minimises food waste, keeps prices down for our customers and helps our farmers to be competitive.
As far as labelling is concerned, there is currently no UK labelling scheme for halal and we believe this is a matter where Government should lead. This is because, in order to give consumers clarity, there would need to be a consistent approach to cover not only supermarkets but butchers and other retailers, restaurants, cafes and the food production and catering industry as a whole.
For example, currently UK regulation allows the term halal to be used to meat that has been pre-stunned before slaughter and to that which has not. Labelling requirements would need to take this into consideration.
We will be happy to discuss these issues with Government and, of course, to comply fully with industry labelling requirements that may be developed.
Regards,
Chris Zawadzki
Waitrose Customer Sales and Support.