Editing Slaughterhouse (section)

==International variations==
[[File:Atria slaughterhouse in Nurmo Seinajoki.JPG|thumb|A slaughterhouse of [[Atria Oyj]] in [[Seinäjoki]], Finland]]
The standards and regulations governing slaughterhouses vary considerably around the world. In many countries the slaughter of animals is regulated by custom and tradition rather than by law. In the non-Western world, including the [[Arab world]], the [[Indian sub-continent]], etc., both forms of meat are available: one which is produced in modern [[mechanization|mechanized]] slaughterhouses, and the other from local [[butcher]] shops.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}}

In some communities animal slaughter and permitted species may be controlled by [[religious law]]s, most notably ''[[halal]]'' for [[Muslim]]s and [[Kosher|''kashrut'']] for [[Jew]]ish communities. This can cause conflicts with national regulations when a slaughterhouse adhering to the rules of religious preparation is located in some [[Western countries]]. In Jewish law, captive bolts and other methods of pre-slaughter paralysis are generally not permissible, due to it being forbidden for an animal to be stunned prior to slaughter. Various halal food authorities have more recently permitted the use of a recently developed fail-safe system of head-only [[stunning]] where the shock is non-fatal, and where it is possible to reverse the procedure and revive the animal after the shock. The use of [[electronarcosis]] and other methods of dulling the sensing has been approved by the Egyptian Fatwa Committee. This allows these entities to continue their religious techniques while keeping accordance to the national regulations.<ref name="egyptianfatwacommittee">{{cite web |publisher=Egyptian Fatwaa Committee |url=http://www.organic-halal-meat.com/article/fatwa-stunning.php |title=The Opinions of the Ulema on the Permissibility of Stunning Animals |date=December 18, 1978 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121202233118/http://www.organic-halal-meat.com/article/fatwa-stunning.php |archive-date=December 2, 2012 }}</ref>

In some societies, traditional cultural and religious aversion to slaughter led to prejudice against the people involved. In [[Japan]], where the ban on slaughter of livestock for food{{Specify|date=April 2010}} was lifted in the late 19th century, the newly found slaughter industry drew workers primarily from villages of ''[[burakumin]]'', who traditionally worked in occupations relating to death (such as executioners and undertakers). In some parts of [[Honshu|western Japan]], prejudice faced by current and former residents of such areas (''burakumin'' "hamlet people") is still a sensitive issue. Because of this, even the Japanese word for "slaughter" (屠殺 ''tosatsu'') is deemed [[political correctness|politically incorrect]] by some [[Advocacy group|pressure group]]s as its inclusion of the [[kanji]] for "kill" (殺) supposedly portrays those who practise it in a negative manner.

Some countries have laws that exclude specific animal species or grades of animal from being slaughtered for human consumption, especially those that are [[Taboo food and drink|taboo food]]. The former [[Prime Minister of India|Indian Prime Minister]] [[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]] suggested in 2004 introducing legislation banning the slaughter of cows throughout [[India]], as [[Hinduism]] holds [[Cattle in religion|cows as sacred]] and considers their slaughter unthinkable and offensive. This was often opposed on grounds of religious freedom. The slaughter of cows and the importation of beef into the nation of [[Nepal]] are strictly forbidden.