Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE, MONDAY, JUNE 8, 1901. INSPECTION OF MEAT.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 9162, 3 June 1901, Page 2

Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE, MONDAY, JUNE 8, 1901. INSPECTION OF MEAT.

One of the primary objects effected by the Slaughtering and Inspection Act of last year was to remove the control of the sanitary conditions under which animals are slaughtered for human consumption from the local bodies and place it m the Department of Agriculture. The licenses for slaughter-houses hitherto granted by the local governing bodies expire on the 30th of this month, after which date licenses will be issued subject to the approval of the Minister for Agriculture. In order to effectually carry out the provisions of the Act, no appointments of inspectors are to be made except of persons who are qualified veterinary surgeons, or who have received a training under their supervision and have passed an examination under a Government veterinarian appointed for that purpose. The object is that there shali be a qualified inspector m every abattoir and meat export slaughter-house, whose duty it is to see that only healthy animals are killed for human consumption. When a Borough Council decides to erect abattoirs, the plans of the building and the proposed site must be approved by the Minister. There is one important provision m the Act— and this applies to Gisborne— and that is that all boroughs with a population of over 2000 must by the 31st March, 1902, have either built an abattoir or appointed sonic meat export works where inspection is carried on to be the municipal abattoirs. The Borough Council is wise m obtaining the opinions of the butchering trade as to the site of the proposed abattoirs, and • as to whether the Gisborne Freezing Works are suitable or not. The butchers ' are opposed to the conversion of the Gisborne Freezing Works into public abattoirs on the ground that the termproposed would be unfair to them, and a]s» on the ground of unsuitableness of ( site. Although the Borough Council is not bound to consult the butchers, it is proper that the fullest, information should be obtained from those who will have most to do with the municipal abattoirs. . For some years past the Chief Govern- , ment Veterinarian has demonstrated that the great majority of the present buildings m which animal flesh is prepared for r human food before being offered for sale are insanitary and revolting m the extreme Two years ago he condemned ■*. the slaughter-houses of Dunedin amd Invercargill, with the result that steps were taken and the evils remedied. These • towns have now properly-constructed and > up-to-date abattoirs, with qualified veterinary inspectors of meat. Nelson has also built municipal abattoirs, and has taken . steps to secure the services of a qualified , inspector. Wanganui made an arrangement some years ago with the Wanganui Freezing Company that all meat slaugh- , tered m the Company s works should be slaughtered under the supervision of the Council's Veterinary Inspector. The bulk of the meat supply of Wellington comes ' directly or indirectly through the two local meat export companies, and there- . fore the public of Wellington has the benefit of having inspected meat. Ohrist- • church is not so fortunate. All meat ' passed as fit for human consumption by the Department's veterinary officers is branded distinctly by certain specified brands, and Mr Gilruth contends that no inspection, so far as he has seen, is so vigorously enforced m any part of the world as m the slaughtering establishments of New Zealand where inspection exists The public weal, he- says, is considered before everything. The returns up to the 31st March last show that 21,160 cattle were examined, and of that number 456 were condemned, the percentage condemned being 2.15; calves, 876 examined, 1 condemnd ; pigs, 5066 examined, 39 condemned); percentage condemned, 0.76; sheep, 979,232 examined, 1530 condemned; lambs, 260,675 examined, 74 condemned. The inspection fee m respect of live stock and meat is 4d for every head of cattle, and 3_d for every 12 (or fraction of 12) calves, sheep, or pigs. The following sanitary provisions must be observed : In every slaughtering -place, tbe killing, dressing, and hanging places shall be floored with concrete or other material approved by the inspector, and thoroughly ventilated. If the walls are of wood, they must be lined on the inside to a height of not less than 6ft from the floor with galvanised iron. The floor and lower portions of the walls, partitions, and posts of the killing and dressing pla/ce shall be thoroughly washed down immediately after slaughtering for the day is finished, or oftener if directed by the inspector. Every part of the interior of the killing and dressing places (except such. part as is lined or cased with galvanised iron) must be thoroughly lime-washed at, intervals of not less than three months. All knives, saws, cleavers, hooks, hangingrails, and other instruments, and all trollies or other conveyances used m or about the slaughtering-place, shall be kept thoroughly clean. The race leading to the killing-place must be suitably paved. The stockyards are to be kept clean, and supplied with a sufficient supply of pure water for the watering of the stock yarded therein. No hides, skins, fat, or other portion of any carcase likely to become a -nuisance shall be stored m any killing, dressing, or hanging place. Every conveyance used for. removing meat from any slaughteringplace must be kept clean, and provided with a clean cover both under and over the meat conveyed therein. A manager or licensee of a slaughtering-place is liable to a penalty not exceeding £50 who removes any carcase or portion of a carcase from the slaughtering-place before the carcase is branded by, the inspector. There can be no doubt that for years past many slaughter-houses have been unfit for their purpose, no proper attention being paid by the owners to cleanliness. Besides the danger of diseased stock being killed m some cases and sold for human food, anyone who ha® passed slaughtering-places m different districts m the colony must have noticed from afar off the offensive smell which arises from ill-kept slaughter-houses. The practic. of keeping pigs about these place, was a disgusting one— the pigs feeding on the blood and offal, and m hot weather, when the stuff was not consumed at once, there arose a horrible stench. This most undesirable state of 1 affairs is now being done away with m eveiy part of the colony, and m centres where, inspection has been established people are beginning to feel that they have security m tli9 knowledge that the meat they eat is guaranteed clean and wholesome. We trust that before long Gisborne will have municipal abattoirs placed on the most suitable site to be obtained m the district. The municipal abattoirs at Nelson are regarded by the veterinary officers as typical abattoirs. The authorities bought 100 acres of land around the buildings, and this enables them to give every butcher a paddock m which to keep his stock. When a butcher wants an animal slaughtered he -imply "rings up" the manager or inspector, and sends out for the dressed carcase. The butchers are not allowed to kill their own animals — m fact, they have nothing to do with the working of the slaughter-house. A fine stream of , water runs past the buildings, and, this , is most important if cleanliness is to be secured. Within about half an hour af killing, the' whole place is perfectly clean. No offal is allowed to be given to pigs [ i until it has been boiled. The Nelson abattoirs have been running for about a

year, and we are informed they haye 'returned a profit of about £100 to the Nelson Borough Council. The abattoirs to be erected at Napier are to be on the same lines as those at Nelson. As the Mayor stated, the Borough Council is borrowing £4500 for land and putting up i suitable buildings. The Gisborne Jior- j ough Council could not do better than I obtain information from Nelson and Invercargill as to the working of their abattoirs.