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Meat Safety Act, 2000 (Act No. 40 of 2000)

Red Meat Regulations, 2004

Part V : Humane Treatment of Animals and Slaughter Process [Section 11(1)(h)]

76. Flaying and evisceration

 

 

1) Dressing must commence without delay after bleeding by -
a) removing the head and feet and presenting them for meat inspection so that these parts correlate with the carcass;
b) removing lactating udders, intact with the skin on, leaving the Lnn inguinalis superficialis on either side intact on the carcass and avoiding spillage of milk on any part of the carcass; and
c) opening incision lines on a hide or skin with a clean sterile hand knife from the inside to the outside only (spear cuts), but a mechanical flaying knife may not be used for this purpose.

 

2) Reproductive organs and any part not utilised commercially must be handled as condemned material and placed in appropriate containers.

 

3) All flaying and evisceration equipment making contact with meat must be sterilized after use on each carcass.

 

4) During flaying and evisceration of a carcass, contact of the exposed meat with platforms, walls, floor, outer surface of the skin or hide and soiled equipment or other material must be avoided at all times.

 

5) Scalding, scraping and pre-evisceration washing of pigs must be completed in the dehairing area before moving to the evisceration area.

 

6) Contamination of the carcass, meat or organs with intestinal or ruminal contents, urine, bile or milk during evisceration must be avoided and where contamination does occur, it must be cut away under the supervision of a registered inspector and not washed off with water.

 

7) All organs and viscera must be made available for meat inspection and must be identifiable with the carcass of origin.

 

8) Carcasses may not be cleaned, wiped or dried with a brush, cloth or any other such implement.

 

9) The intestines may not be separated from the stomach or paunch during evisceration.

 

10) The stomach or paunch, the intestines, uterus, urinary and gall bladders may not be opened in the slaughter area, and gall bladders may be removed intact in the dressing room or area after meat inspection and approval of livers.

 

11) The carcasses of cattle or horses older than three months and pigs heavier than 92 kg must be split lengthways through the spinal column before meat inspection.