The continued growth of the global halal meat market has attracted the attention of governments, policy makers, retailers and others. The expansion in the size of the halal market is largely attributed to Muslim population growth and the fact that Muslims have higher fertility rates. This course delves into the important but emotive subject of halal slaughter and animal welfare. It discusses the requirements of halal slaughter and considers the welfare aspects of pre-slaughter restraint and neck cutting highlighting the arguments for and against slaughter with and without stunning from animal welfare standpoint. Slaughter with and without stunning are discussed with a focus on the debate surrounding the acceptability of stunning for halal meat production. The definition of death from the standpoint of halal slaughter is also discussed as well as the different techniques for efficient bleeding of halal animals based on the anatomy and physiology of small and large ruminants. The two main bleeding techniques; ventral neck cutting and thoracic sticking are discussed.

The origin of the halal dietary requirements are also discussed in greater detail with a focus on how these dietary laws impact the animal welfare at slaughter. Students, academics, policymakers, food businesses, technical managers, animal welfare officers and others with interest in halal slaughter and animal welfare will find this course useful.