Hygiene, safety key words this Eid
abu dhabi — The Abu Dhabi City Municipality said it has stepped up health measures at all abattoirs as the volume of sacrificial animals will go up during the Eid holiday.
More than 11,000 animals are expected to be slaughtered in Abu Dhabi abattoirs, on the first day of Eid Al Adha.
“As many as 3,000 animals are expected to be slaughtered at the Abu Dhabi Automated Slaughterhouse on day one. A veterinary crew has been allocated to perform the necessary checkups on animals and make sure they are fit for human consumption. The crew will also offer assistance to buyers and the municipality has deployed three vets, one inspector and 55 butchers who are trained in food safety and personal hygiene guidelines,” said a municipal statement.
The municipality said it has designated Abu Dhabi Automated Slaughterhouse to handle sacrifices for the Emirati Red Crescent Authority for the Sacrifices Project 2017.
The Abu Dhabi Public Slaughterhouse is expected to receive more than 2,500 sacrifices on the first day of Eid. Eight veterinarians, two inspectors and 150 butchers will be in place at the abattoirs.
Al Wathba Automated Slaughterhouse is expected to process 1,000 sacrificial animals on the first day of Eid while Bani Yas Slaughterhouse, which includes eight veterinarians, 200 butchers and two inspectors, is set to receive 3,000 sacrificial animals.
With four veterinarians, 50 butchers and two inspectors provided to serve the public, Shahama Slaughterhouse is expected to receive 1,500 animals on the first day of Eid.
To reduce processing and waiting time, all four slaughterhouses will not be able to cut up carcasses, nor deliver rumen or intestines on the first and second days of Eid Al Adha.
Officials have urged people to take all their animals to public abattoirs and warned that those who will be caught slaughtering animals outside the municipal abattoirs or in their homes will face legal action. Warnings have been isuses on the outbreak of potential diseases, arising from the slaughtering of animals in makeshift places “Slaughtering animals in homes or outside municipal slaughterhouses could result in diseases being transmitted to humans and also environmental pollution,” said a municipal official.
“In the municipal abattoirs, the animals are subjected to due veterinary tests. There is a set of key elements that render the slaughtering process healthy and safe here.”
The official noted that municipal workers carry out veterinarian tests on animals before and after the slaughtering process.
Abu Dhabi slaughterhouses also provide tailor-made iceboxes for proper storage and transportation of meats and carcasses, prevention spoilage or corruption from heat exposure during the transit process.
The slaughtering service will start from 6.30 am up to 7.30 pm on the first day of Eid Al Adha, and from 6 am up to 7.30 pm on the other days of the Eid holiday.
Slaughter of cows will start after 12 noon on the first day of Eid day at Abu Dhabi Automated Slaughterhouse, Abu Dhabi Public Slaughterhouse, Al Wathba Slaughterhouse, Baniyas Slaughterhouse, and Al Shahama Slaughterhouse, with Al Wathba also allocated for processing camels.
ismail@khaleejtimes.com