through brain trauma. Gallery European regulations The European Convention for the Protection of Animals for Slaughter, or Slaughter Convention (Council of Europe, 1979), requires all large animals to be stunned before slaughter through one of the three modern methods (concussion, electronarcosis, or gas), and prohibits the use of pole-axes, hammers and puntillas. Parties may permit exemptions for religious slaughter, emergency slaughter, slaughter of poultry, rabbits and other small animals. On the other hand, the European Court of Justice (an EU institution) ruled on 17 December 2020 that member states of the European Union may also require a reversible pre-cut stunning procedure in ritual slaughter in order to promote animal welfare. United States regulations Stunning is regulated by the provisions of the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act (7 U.S.C. 1901), which the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is mandated to uphold under the Federal Meat Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 603 (b)). No similar provision exists in the Poultry Products Inspection Act of 1957 (21 U.S.C. 451 et seq.). After confirmation of the first U.S. BSE case, FSIS issued regulations (69 FR 1887, 12 January 2004) prohibiting the use of the most widely used stunning device (air-injection captive bolt stun gun) because the compressed air device (in contrast to the blank cartridge-driven or non-penetrating captive bolt) has been shown to force pieces of brain and other central nervous system (CNS) tissue into the bloodstream. Cattle blood is processed primarily for use as a protein supplement in animal feeds and milk replacer for calves, and could transmit BSE if it contained specified risk materials (SRMs include brain and CNS tissue). See also Pithing Shechita References External links The Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) outlines practical suggestions for humane handling and slaughter of livestock. Meat industry Animal killing