Basic Hygiene Practice
Control of Hygiene and Safety
Ensuring the safety of meat calls for control throughout the food chain from the farm of origin,
inspection before and after slaughter, to the handling and storage of meat and the products until
the time it is consumed.
The Codex Alimentarius commission has elaborated (besides meat inspection Codes) the
Recommended International Code of Hygiene Practice for Fresh Meat and the Recommended
International Code of Hygienic Practice for Poultry Processing which describe the minimum
hygiene requirements for safe meat and poultry production.
• The application of these Codes can be an important step towards the targets:
• a) That the food will not cause infection or intoxication when properly prepared;
• b) Does not contain residues (of pesticides, veterinary drugs and heavy metals) in excess
of established limits;
• c) Is free from disease;
• d) Free from obvious contamination;
• e) Free from defects generally recognised as objectionable;
• f) Has been produced under adequate hygienic control;
• g) Fulfils the expectation of the consumer in regard to composition.
The Codex Alimentarius commission guidelines include advice on the construction of
abattoirs and the facilities required; control of pests, quality of water for cleaning and disinfection;
rules of meat inspection and hygienic practices (including supervision by a veterinary inspector).
The responsibility for the production of safe and wholesome meat is normally shared by
the industry and the controlling authority. This requires a controlling authority which is adequately
resourced and has the legal power to enforce the requirements and which should be independent
of the management of the establishment where the meat is produced.
Good Manufacturing Practice
A fast growing population in developing regions and the tendency to live in densely populated
areas and mega cities increases the risk of rapid disease transmission and large-scale outbreak of
food-borne diseases due to the increasing length and complexity of supply chains. One source of
such cross contamination can be the slaughterhouse and it is therefore mandatory to observe a
stringent regime of control.
Meat inspection consists of ante-mortem inspection of slaughter animals and post-mortem
inspection of slaughtered animals. These are procedures conducted for the purpose of judgement
of safety and suitability and disposition. They play a vital role as main control measures to assure
meat safety and of course to identify and monitor animal diseases.
The inspection is usually carried out by designated veterinarians or meat inspectors at the
abattoir. The meat inspection procedure is carried out in two phases, ante and post mortem
inspection.
During ante mortem inspection the slaughter animals are screened to assess general
behaviour, nutritional status, cleanliness, signs of diseases and abnormalities in posture, structure,
colour, discharges and odour. Suspect dirty, diseased, and injured animals are immediately
separated from the healthy animals to avoid cross contamination and slaughtered separately.
Routine post-mortem examination is routinely carried out to ensure that the carcasses and its
organs are disease free. Results from ante and post mortem inspection are then combined to make
a final judgement on suitability of the meat or organs for human consumption.
FAO has conducted training programs for meat inspectors and prepared concise guidelines
on meat inspection of bovine, small ruminants, pigs, game, poultry and rabbits.
HACCP
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP), is used to describe an internationally
recognized way of managing food safety and protecting consumers.
• The HACCP system is a preventative approach to food safety based on the following 7
principles:
• Identify any hazards that must be prevented eliminated or reduced
• Identify the critical control points (CCPs) at the steps at which control is essential
• Establish critical limits at CCPs
• Establish procedures to monitor the CCPs
• Establish corrective actions to be taken if a CCP is not under control
• Establish procedures to verify whether the above procedures are working effectively
• Establish documents and records to demonstrate the effective application of the above
measures
It is generally accepted that HACCP is the most effective means of ensuring the safety of food,
thereby protecting consumer health.
Traceability
The Codex Alimentarius Commission defines Traceability as “the ability to follow the
movement of a food through specified stage(s) of production, processing and distribution”.
Livestock identification and meat traceability systems were introduced in countries as a reaction
to the BSE problem. A good traceability system provides accurate information on the origin, sex,
age, breed, movements and records veterinarian treatments an animal received. Traceability
systems are important tools to prevent the spread of animal diseases and to enhance biosecurity in
general.
Animal identification and livestock/meat traceability are not themselves food safety, animal
disease prevention or quality assurance programmes, but they facilitate public health, veterinary
public health and animal health interventions. FAO through its contribution to the Codex
Alimentarius commission is involved in inclusion of traceability within international standards.
Common animal identification options include
Paint/spray markings
Hot/Cold branding
Tattoo
Collar tag (neck band)
Plastic/metal eartags
Microchip (RFID-Radio frequency identification device)
Within the abattoir, meat traceability requires the clear identification of the live animals through
to meat products. Possible meat identification options include
Paper/plastic Tags
Ink stamping
Bar code labels (see Figure 1 below)
Microchip (RFID)
Figure 1. Bar Code label (From FAO project in Somalia)
Costs of the identification and thereby traceability systems vary hugely, depending on the options
applied and the level of detail required. Functioning traceability schemes are often a precondition
for meat producing countries to enter export markets. Hence traceability is not only a health issue
but has also become a marketing tool. The goal is to achieve transparency in the meat chain “from
farm to fork”.
Public Health Issues
Although meat is generally perceived as a high value product which is a good source of iron and
vitamins, globally there have been a number public health issues which have had adverse effects
on the production, trade and consumption of meat.
The risk of animal zoonoses is perhaps the biggest cause of public concern with meat. Zoonoses
are defined by the WHO as “Any disease or infection which is naturally transmissible from
vertebrate animals to man". There are over 200 zoonoses known to man of which tuberculosis
alone causes more deaths worldwide than any other infectious disease, with an estimated 1.6
million deaths in 2005.
Meat inspection is the principal method for ensuring the safety of meat. The purpose of meat
inspection is to provide safe and wholesome meat for human consumption. The responsibility for
achieving this objective lies primarily with the relevant public health authorities who are normally
represented by veterinarians or meat inspectors at the abattoir. Common weaknesses in meat
inspection include a lack of properly resourced, independent and a competent body of inspectors
(veterinarians, meat inspectors) who are not fully legally and practically empowered to implement
their objective judgement on the fitness of meat and animal parts for human consumption.
FAO has also produced guidelines and standards on meat inspection procedures and techniques for
developing countries. Capacity building in updated meat inspection has also been a key feature of FAO
support to member countries. FAO and the World Health Organization (WHO), in addition to the World
Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), is responding to the global threats of animal zoonoses through
surveillance and research networks for early detection of animal diseases and better scientific
cooperation between countries. FAO has also established an emergency crisis management center
(CMC) that supports countries in responding to animal disease outbreaks.
