ANSCI 4205 (Slaughtering of Animals and Processing of their Products)

Prepared by: ALONA T. BADUA

E-mail Address: alona.badua@clsu2.edu.ph

Central Luzon State University

Science City of Muñoz 3120
Nueva Ecija, Philippines

Instructional Module for the Course

ANSCI 4205 SLAUGHTERING OF ANIMALS AND PROCESSING OF THEIR
PRODUCTS

Module 5
Slaughterhouse/Dressing Plant
Overview
The slaughterhouse is a place where animals are kept before
slaughter, conduct ante and post mortem inspections, the conduct
of actual slaughtering operation and storage for carcasses. This
module gives an introduction to the slaughterhouse or dressing
plant including its classification, parts, equipment and features.

I. Objectives
After finishing this module the student will be able to:
1. Define what is a slaughterhouse and its categories
2. List down the prerequisites of a good slaughterhouse
3. Identify the parts of the slaughterhouse including the important tools and
equipment needed for slaughtering animal

II. Learning Activities

A. The Slaughterhouse
Slaughterhouse – also called abattoir (from the French verb abattre, "to strike
down"), is a facility where animals are killed and processed into meat products.

Categories of slaughterhouse
AAA – those with facilities a nd operational procedures so adequate that the meat
processed herein is eligible for sale in any market in and out of the country.

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AA – those with facilities and operational procedures sufficiently adequate that the meat
processed herein is eligible for sale in any market in the Philippines.

A- those with facilities and operational procedures of minimum adequacy as defined by

NMIC and the meat processed herein is eligible for sale only in the city or
municipality in which the plant is located.

B – procedure of less than minimum standards that must be closed until minimum
standards are provided or achieved.

Prerequisites of a good slaughterhouse

Plants should be located far from areas where objectionable odors or particles
are generated, such as dumps or chemical plants. Slaughtering plants should also have
accessibility; therefore, they should be connected to streets or highways but separated
from other plants or buildings.
Water supply must be in good quantity because washing is a continuous
operation throughout the plant. Non-potable water is a hazard and must be avoided.
Carcasses are washed after dressing, so any bacterial contamination in the water supply
will be passed to the meat substrate.
Water disposal is equally important, because the wastewater contains grease,
blood, hair, and tissue and bone particles. Slope in floors is required (no less than 10
cm for each 6 m in working areas, and 15 to 20 cm for each 6 m in the coolers) to
avoid accumulation of effluents
Ceilings should be no less than 3 m high or more in certain working areas, such
as those for evisceration and cleaning. They should be flat and smooth and free of
unnecessary structures.
Building materials for walls, floors, drains, ceilings, and equipment are also
subject to regulations. All these materials should provide easy cleaning. In general,
these materials comprise concrete, ceramic floor tile, floor-glazed brick, glazed tiles,
smooth surface. Portland cement plaster, plastic, or Portland cement plaster for ceilings.
Floors must be of any non-slippery material. The size of the killing room may
vary according to plant capacity, but in any case it must have enough space for animal
handling and equipment operation, with walking areas around operative sections.
Adequate lighting is also necessary, either natural or artificial. In any case, 220
lux in the working areas is necessary, 540 lux in the inspection areas, and110 lux in the
coolers. All lamps must have a protective shield.
Ceilings must be painted in white or a light color. Ventilation and refrigeration
also must be controlled for comfort as well as for reducing microbial growth. A
maximum temperature of 10°C is necessary in all working areas.
Hand-washing facilities and drinking fountains should be located in the working
rooms. These must be pedal operated. Facilities for boot washing before walking into
the working area must be supplied.

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Product transferred in the plant should not come in contact with the doorways;
1.50 m doorways are necessary. There must be double-acting doors, constructed of
rust-resistant.
Antemortem facilities include livestock pens, inspection facilities, and holding
pens. Transportation conditions from the production area to the slaughtering plant
deeply affect meat quality, besides being part of humane animal handling. Handling,
time, climatic conditions, and general health of the animals determine transportation
losses.
Once animals are in the livestock pens, water must be provided. All parts of the
pen, as well as runways and ramps, must be paved with concrete or brick and well
drained. The number of animals in each pen depends on animal size.
Sheds must be provided to prevent excessive sun exposure. Good lighting (54
lux) is necessary. Holding pens allow the animals to walk into the stunning area without
unnecessary stress.

a. Lairage
The lairage provides temporary housing for animals prior to slaughter and its
design should take account of the following three needs: animal welfare; maintaining
cleanliness; and separation of sick or “suspect” animals.

b. Stunning and bleeding area

This area is designed to allow rapid shackling and bleeding of the stunned animal
in order to meet welfare criteria. This area should be physically separated from the
dressing area to minimize the risk of cross-contamination of exposed meat.

c. Dressing area
The dressing area is used for the skinning, evisceration and final carcass-
preparation stages for cattle and sheep, and for the scalding, dehairing, evisceration
and polishing stages for pigs. This is an area where exposed meat is produced, so
contamination from the exterior must be prevented.

d. Refrigeration facilities
If meat is not preserved by any other means soon after slaughter, temperature
control is vitally important in controlling the survival and growth of both spoilage and
pathogenic organisms. Adequate facilities must be provided for the chilling (or freezing)
and storage of carcasses and meat.
Walk-in chillers should have good artificial lighting to allow safe movement of
products and to facilitate identity checks and other specific activities.
The average temperature of a cooler must be between 2° and 6°C. A certain
degree of “sweating” occurs when relative humidity is high (70% or more. Required
building material in coolers must be easy to clean; floors must have a slope to allow
proper drain. Rails should be at least 3.3 m above the floor for halves of beef, 9 m for
calves and hogs, and 2.25 m for quarters of beef; goat and sheep carcasses should be
suspended 1.95 m to the hook. Carcasses must be hung 1 m from the walls and 0.60 m

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from the refrigeration equipment, with a separation among carcasses of 0.30. Edible
organs and offal should be placed in a separate cooler of the carcasses. Retained
carcasses or parts should be located in a refrigerated separate compartment.

e. Cutting rooms
The result of boning and cutting operations is exposure of numerous cut surfaces
of meat that are liable to become contaminated by micro-organisms. It is imperative,
therefore, that all tables and surfaces, all cutting equipment including knives, and the
hands and clothing of operatives be cleaned and kept clean. To this end, adequate
washing and sterilization (for knives and tools) facilities must be available.

2. Basic equipment required for slaughter and dressing

Slaughtering equipment, particularly for smallscale operations, need not be
elaborate and expensive. The amount of equipment will depend on the slaughtering
procedures employed. If possible, all equipment should be made of stainless steel or
plastic, be rust resistant and easily cleaned and sanitized.
Equipment that does come into in contact with the meat (e.g. overhead rails,
working platforms, stunning pens) is usually made of galvanized steel. The basic
equipment that is needed for the slaughtering operation consists of:
• stunning gun, electrical head tongs or simple stunning equipment for direct blow;
• knives:
– sticking: 16 cm sharpened on both sides;
– skinning: 16 cm curved;
• a sharpening steel;
• oil or water sharpening stone;
• scabbard and belt for holding knives;
• meat saw (hand or electric) and cleaver;
• block and tackle or chain hoist strong enough to hold the weight of the animal to be
slaughtered;
• pritch, chocks or skinning rack (dressing cradle);
• a strong beam, tripod or track 2.4–3.4 m from the floor;
• spreader – gambrel or metal pipe;
• several buckets;
• working platforms.

The following items are additional equipment required when pigs are scalded and
scraped rather than skinned:
• scalding barrel or tank;
• pot, barrel or system for boiling water;
• bell scrapers;
• solid scraping table or platform;
• thermometer registering up to 70 °C
• hog or hay hook;
• torch or flame for singeing.

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Other useful additional equipment includes:

• stunning pen;
• bleeding hooks (for vertical bleeding);
• blood-catching trough;
• wash trough (for tripe).

The following items are necessary for sanitation of hands and tools:
• hand wash-basin;
• implement sterilizers.
There should be provisions for thoroughly cleaning all equipment coming into
contact with carcasses or meat. Implement sterilizers are stainless-steel boxes holding
hot (82 °C) water, shaped to suit particular equipment (i.e. knives, cleavers, saws,
etc.). Knife sterilizers should be positioned where every operator who uses a knife has
immediate access.
Workers should wear protective clothing of the type and colour approved by the
competent authority. The clothing should be kept clean at all times; otherwise it should
be changed on a regular basis.
Workers should wash their hands and arms whenever they contact contaminated
items/surfaces or otherwise on a regular basis, at the start of work and after every
break. Workers who handle both external hide/pelt surfaces and exposed products
should wash their hands before touching exposed carcass surfaces. Movement of
workers between “clean” and “dirty” areas of the abattoirs should be restricted.

III. References
FAO. 2004. Good Practices for the Meat Industry. FAO Farm Production and Health
Manual.
FAO. 2004. Guidelines for humane handling, transport and slaughter of livestock.
Ibarra, P.I. 1983. Meat Processing for Small and Medium Scale Operation. University of
the Philippines, Los Banos, Laguna