MEDIA STATEMENT-
Parys – As part of the recognition of abattoirs that contribute to food security and safety of the province, the North West Department of Agriculture and Rural Development held the Abattoir Hygiene Rating Scheme Awards in Woodlands, Parys to honour forty-six (46) of them.
The aim of these awards was to enhance food security, public health, and animal welfare by improving the hygienic quality of meat while prolonging the shelf-life of meat and meat products, decreasing food spoilage and wastage, and further lowering the risk of food poisoning from meat products.
This year’s abattoir awards were based on the 2022 abattoir audits and inspections that were carried out by the department’s Veterinary Public Health Practitioners and state veterinarians through regular inspections, abattoirs are monitored within the Meat Safety and standards, requirements, and regulations to ensure safe meat is produced for human consumption.
The Head of the Department, Mr Mokhatla noted that the audits were conducted using a Hygiene Assessment System (HAS) form/document which was developed at the national level and is used by all provinces. ”These awards come after a three-year absence in our midst since 2019, as a Department we further assure and reassure all our stakeholders that we will do our best to produce healthy meat including all related products within the abattoir industry” emphasized Mokhatla.
A total of 46 abattoirs were registered and audited in 2022, eighteen (18) were high throughput, twenty-two (22) were low throughput and six (6) were rural abattoirs.
The Meat Safety Act provides measures to promote meat safety and the safety of animal products; to establish and maintain essential national standards in respect of abattoirs; to regulate the importation and exportation of meat; to establish meat safety schemes; and to provide for matters concerned therewith.
The overall winner of high throughput red meat, Ms Sanelisiwe Maseng of SoloProp, trading at Vryburg Abattoir, thanked the department for these prestigious awards, the Veterinary Public Health Officers (VPHOs) for inspiring them to continue with compliance to ensure food security and food safety.
Three audits were conducted per abattoir during the course of 2022 and the overall performance was based on the results of all three audits conducted during the year, of the total 46 abattoirs twenty (20) were poultry and twenty-six (26) red meat.
Captions
256A1056.JPG – Head of Department, Thupi Mokhatla together with Dr Langa Madyibi handing over certificate of high throughput red meat to overall achiever, Ms Sanelisiwe Maseng of SoloProp.
256A1001.JPG – Fouries Poultry Plant 2, overall achiever of high throughput poultry were handed over certificate by Head of Department, Thupi Mokhatla and Dr Langa Madyibi.
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