Day 077 - 25 Jan 95 - Page 29
1 Q. To what extent are any of those requirements about
2 buildings relevant to animal welfare as opposed to hygiene?
3 A. Well, it is an audit of the building and the area of
4 the abattoir. It is important in terms of animal welfare
5 that the layerages are not dangerous to the animal, no
6 protruding angles, smooth walls, adequate ventilation,
7 protection from the rain.
8
9 Q. Can I ask you this: Do you know whether a poor standard of
10 animal husbandry in, let us say, a slaughterhouse, poor
11 standard of animal welfare, has any effect upon the meat
12 into which the animal is in due course converted?
13 A. Oh, definitely.
14
15 Q. How can that happen?
16 A. If an animal is stressed just before it is killed, and
17 it has a very high acid level in its cell structure, you
18 get various problems; you get bone taint, for example.
19
20 Q. Bone taint?
21 A. Yes, "taint".
22
23 Q. What is the pathology of that? How does that happen?
24 A. In the pelvic ball joint, if you think of an animal and
25 its pelvis and the ball joint, if the animal has a high
26 acid content and is stressed and agitated, invariably you
27 will get a growth and a terrible smell, and it is all
28 stimulated by bacteria and not bleeding properly and the
29 general condition of the animal. You will get what is
30 called bone taint, and it means that the animal(?) has to
31 be destroyed. That is all do with stress.
32
33 Q. That is just an example?
34 A. Yes.
35
36 Q. One can see the damage done by projecting nails or
37 something?
38 A. You do not want the animal bruised; you do not want the
39 meat bruised.
40
41 Q. Sorry?
42 A. You do not want the meat bruised.
43
44 Q. No, you do not want the meat bruised and, presumably, you
45 do not want the hide torn either?
46 A. No.
47
48 Q. This bone taint, does it affect the look of the meat, the
49 taste, the smell or what?
50 A. No, it does not affect the look of it, but it very much
51 affects the taste and the smell of it.
52
53 Q. Can you turn over to page 37 -- perhaps you are already on
54 the page -- the second page of the audit form? We see
55 there is a specific entry for slaughterhouses. It says:
56 "Layerage unloading and handling of livestock to be
57 carried out with utmost regard to animal welfare"?
58 A. Yes.
59
60 Q. What are the requirements so far as unloading and handling
