§ Lord Lucasasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, in their view, the study by Mackey and Derrick, Contamination of deep tissues of carcasses by bacteria present on slaughter instruments or in the gut (Journal of Applied Bacteriology 1979 Apr; 46(2): 355–66), and the study reported in the Lancet in September 1996 by Tam Garland, demonstrate that brain material becomes spread through the whole carcass of an animal after stunning. [HL1889]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath)Neither study, in our view, demonstrates that brain tissue becomes spread through the whole carcass of an animal after stunning. The work by Mackey and Derrick concerns contamination by bacteria and does not relate to brain tissue. Garland reported only the finding of brain tissue in the vessels carrying blood from the heart to the lungs following the use of a stunning device which injects air at high pressure into the cranium. This device is not used in United Kingdom abattoirs.