Choosing a slaughter method involves balancing animal welfare concerns, religious and cultural practices, and legal requirements. Advances in technology and increasing awareness of animal welfare are driving improvements in these methods.
Hlobisile Yende, a livestock and crop farmer from Heidelberg in Gauteng, said it is critically important that people entrusted with slaughtering livestock, do due diligence to ensure that the meat is of the right standards.
Slaughtering the right way
She said the before, during and post-slaughtering are the most important stages because that could either grow one’s business or close it up as there are hygiene and quality assurances that need to be considered.
“It is very important to minimise the stress on the animal. The handling of the animal is important during all the phases of the slaughtering process. The space is important because it needs to be a conducive space so that it can be put it at ease.
“Also, the animals need to have access to water [and] it must be healthy. The training of the staff is crucial as they need to know how to handle the animal so they do not cause panic and stress,” she said.
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Yende said slowness when slaughtering an animal has an impact on the stress level the animal endures.
“Less stress as possible, doing it quicker [are] key things it needs to ensure that the animal does not feel pain. Importantly to note, the bleeding needs to be complete [because] if not, it will affect the colour of the meat, risking contamination, and determining shelf life of the meat.
“Correct techniques are needed; the handling, the transportation need to be done correctly,” she added.
Jeremiah Jothams, the founder of Basadi Agribusiness in Carletonville in Gauteng, said the time of slaughtering, especially on poultry, needs to be considered.
“It is recommended that slaughtering should take place [in the] very early hours of the morning. If animals that need to be slaughtered have to go to an abattoir, loading them in a truck should be in a humane way.
Keeping animals calm is critical
“They should not be overloaded, especially the birds. Even on the transportation, there should not be too much heat, too much lighting and noise. When they are offloaded, they should get at least 30 minutes to cool down,” he said.
Jothams explained that calmness in livestock before slaughtering is critical to avoid animals running around in fear. This could be a danger to the animals, the infrastructure, and the people around.
He added that the calmness during slaughter, as well as the temperatures the meat is stored in afterwards, are crucial for ensuring the meat remains healthy and safe for consumption.
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