Although Dr. Temple Grandin wrote the book on best animal welfare practices, much can still be learned to make slaughter and stunning practices more humane.

The University of Wisconsin-River Falls Animal Welfare Lab's summary of the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service's (FSIS) humane handling regulatory activity from 2018 identified ineffective stunning as the most common cause of suspension.

In 2016 and 2017, 107 and 104 humane handling enforcement actions were posted to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) Web site, respectively.

As I listen to plant owners talk about the issues they have had in this area and I read the humane handling incidents information provided by FSIS, I have noticed a recurring theme in plants that have had multiple issues with mis-stuns.

Increasingly, consumers want their meat to be raised and slaughtered in a humane way. Is the protein industry changing to better meet consumer expectations?