Sound and safe? The ambiguous role of harm reduction in regulatory practices in slaughterhouses

This paper examines how regulatory practices in beef and pork slaughterhouses are constructed and to what extent these practices are inspired by the principle of harm reduction. With its emphasis on food safety, the food regulation literature often applies a technical approach to analyse and manage risks in food production, taking for granted the moral and political values and power dynamics that shape meat regulation. Such an instrumentalist approach to meat regulation is inattentive to the specific controversial nature of slaughterhouse sites and its social dynamics. The paper adds a criminological perspective to the food regulation literature, focusing on the human dimension and social interactions in meat regulation. The qualitative research design included interviews with 77 involved stakeholders (i.e. state, civil society and corporate actors) in the Belgian beef and pork sectors. The findings show that the current regulation of meat production, by its design, normalises and accepts certain harms. The analysis also singles out organisational and extra-organisational factors and social interactions that impair the implementation of the harm reduction goal, as foreseen by the food safety and animal welfare regulations. These factors include power dynamics among stakeholders, the vulnerable position of migrants and official veterinarians doing the dirty jobs, the stigma on meat operators who are regarded as ‘cowboys and criminals’, and society’s changing norms concerning killing and consuming animals. Such factors enhance tensions and distrust among the involved actors, which also influence regulatory practices. The paper concludes that if harm reduction is to be taken seriously, a more holistic approach is needed, that protects the (interconnected) interests of all stakeholders involved. This supports the development of regulatory initiatives based on a ‘One Health’ approach and Ecological Regulation (Broom, 2017; Parker et al., 2018), that focus on the avoidance of various harms caused by meat production and its regulation.