Poland Is Nearing Vote To Legalize Kosher Slaughter
The Polish government reportedly is consulting with trade unions on legislation to allow kosher and halal slaughter.
The Polish Press Agency, PAP, reported Jan. 23 that a ministerial committee had given the trade unions copies of a draft amendment allowing ritual slaughter under the Polish Act on the Protection of Animals.
The unions have until Jan. 30 to respond, Malgorzata Ksiazyk of the Polish Ministry of Agriculture told PAP, after which time the bill will be brought to a vote.
Jerzy Wierzbicki, president of the Polish Beef Association, told Polskie Radio on Tuesday that he supported a “liberal policy” on ritual slaughter.
The legislation on ritual slaughter began in November after Poland’s highest court declared unconstitutional a 2004 government provision permitting the slaughter of conscious animals only for religious reasons. The court was reviewing a petition filed by animal rights activists.
The ruling came into effect this month, the same time as a new European law, Regulation 1099, which requires that animals do not experience “unnecessary suffering” but provides exceptions for religious slaughter. Poland’s halal and kosher slaughter business is estimated to be worth $250 million annually, mainly owing to exports.
The new legislation is meant to ensure that Polish law is compatible with European law, ministry officials said. Polish Agriculture Minister Stanislaw Kalemba has vowed to keep ritual slaughter legal in Poland.
Earlier this month, 90 scientists and two Polish lawmakers wrote to Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk to request that Poland ban ritual slaughter, which the authors said was cruel.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30