A proposal by South Australia Agriculture Minister Michael O’Brien to introduce mandatory pre-stunning of cattle in Australian abattoirs has not been accepted by other federal and state ministers.

The Primary Industries Ministerial Council will meet again in three months to discuss the issue.

All Queensland cattle are stunned before slaughter, and that state’s minister, Tim Mulherin, says he supports the humane slaughter of animals and stunning is part of that process.

“What council decided was that senior officials will undertake consultation with stakeholders around stunning and report back to the next Ministerial Council, which will be held at the end of October this year.”