Role of slaughter facilities management in zoonoses and safety of meat produced for human consumption in Nigeria: a review

Abstract

Background This study attempts to review the role of slaughter facilities management of all zoonotic diseases encountered at the abattoirs as well as the safety of meat produced for public consumption in abattoirs in Nigeria. Good hygienic practices were totally absent in the abattoirs. There were dilapidated slaughtering and processing facilities, inadequate clean water supplies, no refrigerators and lack of facilities for the collection and storage of waste. Zoonotic agents demonstrated in slaughtered animals in Nigeria include Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium bovis, Leptospira species, Campylobacter species, Yersinia species, Clostridia species., Brucella abortus, Brucella melitensis, Brucella suis, and Salmonella spp. Other disease-causing infectious agents encountered at the abattoirs include Echerichia coli O157, Salmonella and Campylobacter species. The meat transportation is done by motor bike, wheel barrows and open vehicles and this become sources of physical contamination. Main Body Animals were not being examined regularly before or after slaughter, offals were washed with drainage water, effluent from drainage systems and that meat and organs cleaned from such drainages were sold to the public, leading to unsafe meat being released for public consumption. Meat and carcasses were conveyed out of the abattoir using unhygienic means of transport. Butchers and many abattoir workers were observed not using protective clothing during operations. Waste disposal was indiscriminate not regularly carried out which was hazardous to the environment, while the authorities concerned were not making any effort to improve the situation. Diseases such as Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia, Fasciolosis, Tuberculosis and Helminthoses were most frequently encountered some of the diseases were of public health and economic importance. Conclusion Meat Inspection and hygiene Act shall be enacted and signed into law. Provision of waste disposal system such as incinerators are recommended. The drainage system should be upgraded and modernized. Use of abattoir waste as a manure and the slurry as fertilizer is also recommended. In Nigeria none of the abattoirs met the minimum hygienic standard of operation as recommended by the Codex Alimentarius and they could not have supported the production of safe meat and meat products for human consumption.

Assessment of the Operational facilities and Hygienic Practices of Abattoirs and Butcher shops in Ethiopia: Implications for Consumer’s Health

“…Bleeding accomplished on the oor in a horizontal position. This is consistent with a review by Ibrahim et al, in Nigeria [22], where animals were slaughtered on the oor polluted with blood and fecal material. Nonetheless, animals need to be hoisted vertically with their heads down for e cient bleeding as this decreases the risk of the carcass being contaminated [23].…”

Socio-economic and health costs of porcine/human cysticercosis, neurocysticercosis and epilepsy to small-scale pig producers in Tanzania

“…The number of veterinary officers assigned to meat inspection is insufficient to adequately cover the entire country (Maziku et al 2017 ). In addition, there is still a hygiene issue in slaughterhouses and among pig growers (Ibrahim et al 2021 ). The degree of knowledge among pig keepers about the life cycle, diagnosis, vaccination, and treatment of porcine cysticercosis remains poor (Maganira 2020 ).…”

Pre-slaughter, slaughter and post-slaughter practices of slaughterhouse workers in Southeast, Nigeria: Animal welfare, meat quality, food safety and public health implications

“…Depending on the availability of slaughter and meat processing equipment, slaughter facilities can be classified as slaughter slabs (having little or no facilities and usually situated in rural areas), slaughterhouses [SHs] and abattoirs (having modern carcass processing equipment, mechanised and mostly found in urban settings) [8,9]. As at 2008, there were 1,239 slaughter facilities in Nigeria, which consisted of 30 abattoirs, 132 SHs and 1077 slaughter slabs [8,10]. However, most of the abattoirs and SHs are now dilapidated and in a state of disrepair [9][10][11][12][13].…”

“…As at 2008, there were 1,239 slaughter facilities in Nigeria, which consisted of 30 abattoirs, 132 SHs and 1077 slaughter slabs [8,10]. However, most of the abattoirs and SHs are now dilapidated and in a state of disrepair [9][10][11][12][13]. The primary role of slaughter facilities is to ensure hygienic processing and release of safe, quality and wholesome meat to the public; through efficient ante-mortem and post-mortem inspections, re-inspection of dressed meats at sales outlets, and condemnation and subsequent destruction of unfit meats/animal products [10,12,13].…”