Require non-stunned and stunned meat to be labelled accordingly
The Parliament petitions site records 115,954 signatures for this petition, which closed on 1 March 2026. The Government responded on 22 December 2025.
The petition
The petition's creator is not named in the Petitions site's published record. Quoted in full from the UK Parliament petitions site.
Require non-stunned and stunned meat to be labelled accordingly
We think it should be required that the labelling of non-stunned and stunned meat be clearly labelled throughout the food chain. This includes shops, supermarkets, suppliers, fast food and restaurants
This would include labels on every product available to consumers
We think UK government should implement mandatory method of slaughter labelling for all meat products Stunned or Non-Stunned. For all industries linked to food, including but not limited to shops, supermarkets, schools, restaurants, fast food, cafes and suppliers
We think this promotes consumer choice, enhances transparency, especially for religion and ethics
We think no one should be forced to consume food which doesn't meet their ethical and religious choices, they should have the right to choose without prejudice
The Government's response
The Government published its response on 22 December 2025; the petitions site lists the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs as responsible. Its summary:
Whilst there is no regulatory requirement for labelling of meat from animals slaughtered without stunning, any information of this nature must be accurate and must not be misleading to the consumer.
The response in full:
The government encourages the highest standards of animal welfare at slaughter and would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter, but the government respects the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs. The first national legislative requirement for stunning before slaughter was – in England and Wales – the Slaughter of Animals Act 1933. The Act also introduced an exception from the requirement to stun when animals are slaughtered in accordance with religious rites, for the food of Muslims and Jews.
Whilst currently there are no regulations that require the labelling of meat from animals slaughtered without stunning, where any information of this nature is provided it must be accurate and must not be misleading to the consumer. Additionally, major retailers have sourcing policies requiring that fresh meat comes from animals that have been stunned before slaughter. They may operate limited concessions for halal or kosher food that will be clearly labelled. Some farm assurance schemes, such as Red Tractor and RSPCA Assured, require stunning before slaughter.
A consultation on proposals to improve and extend current method of production labelling was undertaken last year by the previous government. The consultation sought views on options for the production standards behind the label, including the period of life which should be covered by the standards. The government’s response to this consultation is available on https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fairer-food-labelling. The government will consider the potential role of this labelling as part of the ongoing development of the government’s wider animal welfare strategy. This includes consideration of the period of life that could be covered by labelling standards, up to and including whether the animal is stunned before slaughter.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
This is a revised response. The Petitions Committee requested a response which more directly addressed the request of the petition. You can find the original response towards the bottom of the petition page https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/737327
Where the signatures came from
Signatures came from 650 constituencies. Measured against each constituency's electorate at the 2024 general election, the most came from Staffordshire Moorlands, with 5.0 signatures per 1,000 electors (349 in all).
114,958 of the signatures were from the UK and 996 from elsewhere, by the location signers gave.
| Constituency | Signatures | Electorate, July 2024 | Per 1,000 electors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Staffordshire Moorlands | 349 | 69,892 | 5.0 |
| Louth and Horncastle | 353 | 76,880 | 4.6 |
| Derbyshire Dales | 319 | 73,324 | 4.4 |
| Richmond and Northallerton | 328 | 73,886 | 4.4 |
| Rossendale and Darwen | 330 | 74,440 | 4.4 |
| Daventry | 346 | 80,879 | 4.3 |
| South East Cornwall | 311 | 72,654 | 4.3 |
| South Shropshire | 327 | 76,677 | 4.3 |
| Great Yarmouth | 310 | 73,317 | 4.2 |
| North Cornwall | 326 | 76,741 | 4.2 |
| Region | Signatures |
|---|---|
| South East | 16,732 |
| North West | 14,736 |
| South West | 12,601 |
| East of England | 11,971 |
| West Midlands | 11,079 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 10,813 |
| East Midlands | 10,329 |
| Wales | 6,417 |
| Scotland | 6,385 |
| London | 6,136 |
| North East | 5,424 |
| Northern Ireland | 1,397 |
Source and receipt
- https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/737327.jsonUK Parliament Petitions API · read 2026-10-15 · SHA-256
0190bab7b16b9e8c… - The petition on petition.parliament.uk
The petition's words are its creator's and the response is the Government's; this site quotes both and gives no view on either. Signature counts can still change while a petition is open. To report an error, send a correction request.