Slaughterhouse Hygiene Problems

     Apart from the environmental pollutants, illegal preservatives, and growth-promoting agents found in most meat, the conditions of the slaughterhouse and meat handling are detrimentally unhygienic.  There is an excessive amount of contamination of meat that happens during transportation and during the routine slaughtering.

A main principle of maintaining well hygiene in the slaughterhouse is to avoid contact between the carcass and the floor especially after the cow has already been skinned. Many slaughterhouses use incorrect practices. Cows carcasses are allowed to touch the floor, carcasses are hung too close together- some that are skinned and some un-skinned, allowing the hair and contamination to touch the skinned carcasses. Cows are often slaughtered on the same slaughter slab causing large bacterial loads through cross contamination. This increases the risk of food poisoning microorganisms such as salmonella and E. coli.