Orthodox Union won’t certify kosher beef slaughtered using controversial method

The Orthodox Union has told its approved beef purveyors in South America to stop using a controversial slaughter method.

The OU, which is the largest kosher certifying agency in the United States, sent a letter to its meat purveyors in June notifying them that it would no longer accept meat slaughtered using the “shackle and hoist” method, says Rabbi Menachem Genack, CEO of the organization’s kosher division.

The letter comes after Israel decided to ban the import of any meat slaughtered using the method, in which the animal is pulled into the air by its legs and then flipped onto the ground before being slaughtered. Critics of the method, which is commonly used in South America but not permitted in Israel, say it puts unnecessary stress on the animal and is inhumane.

— JTA