A widespread kosher slaughter practice is under scrutiny.
American rabbis and animal rights groups oppose the practice known as “shackle and hoist,” in which a cow is strung up by a hind leg and then dropped on the ground before its throat is slit.
An undercover video shot at a kosher slaughterhouse in Uruguay by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals was obtained this week by the Forward newspaper, which has been investigating the practice for months.
The practice is common among kosher meat producers because Israel’s Chief Rabbinate requires cows to be upside down when they are slaughtered.
The Orthodox Union has been working to have the Israeli mandate rescinded, according to the Forward, while the Conservative movement’s rabbinic association, meeting this week in Washington, reiterated its position that the “shackle and hoist” method violates Jewish law.
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