CH to shut down 5 abattoirs

CEBU, Philippines — At least five slaughterhouses in Cebu City would be closed by the city government next week after they failed in the international standards of structural and operations of the facility.

Department of Veterinary Medicine & Fisheries (DVMF) chief Dr. Alice Utlang said they have already informed the owners of the five abattoirs located in Barangays Mabolo, Mambaling, Banilad, Labangon, and Capitol Site that a closure order will be served next week.

“Ang lima ang ipasira namo kay zero gyud ang iyang grado. Base sa classification, dili gyud siya mopasar so mao na among gi-recommend for closure,” Utlang said.

Utlang refused to divulge the names of the owners until the closure order is signed by Mayor Tomas Osmeña. The owners, however, may reapply for accreditation provided that comply all the requirements.

Aside from the five facilities that are set to be closed, Utlang said seven others were given conditional permit to operate while complying with the requirements to be at par with the international standards.  At present, there are 27 slaughterhouses operating in the city.

Utlang assured that the supply of meat in the city will not be affected despite the scheduled shutdown of the five abattoirs next week.

“Pwede man sila maka pa ihaw ngadto’s Double A ug Single A nga ihawan. Unya pwede pa gihapon sila magtuyok og lechon but dili na sila ka ihaw sa ilang facility,” she said.

Utlang met with the private slaughterhouse operators yesterday. Officials of the National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS), City Health Department, and Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office also attended the meeting.

The NMIS said that a compliant slaughterhouse should be in an elevated area; far from any building used for human habitation, and from any factory, public place (at least 200 meters) and should be free from dust, odor, smoke and other contaminants; and shall be at least 10 meters away from the river bank as provided in the Sanitation Code of the Philippines, among others.

The city government together with the NMIS has been conducting inspection and evaluation of all abattoirs in the city since April. According to NMIS, there are three classifications of slaughterhouses that are allowed to operate in a city or municipality---Single A, Double A, and Triple A.

Single “A” slaughterhouses are those “facilities and procedures of minimum adequacy that the livestock and fowls slaughtered therein are suitable for distribution and sale only within the city or municipality where the slaughterhouse is located.”

Double “A” slaughterhouses are “those with facilities and operational procedures sufficiently adequate that the livestock and fowls slaughtered therein are suitable for sale in any market domestic.”

Triple “A” slaughterhouses are “those with facilities and operational procedures appropriate to slaughter livestock and fowls for sale in any market domestic or international.”

Utlang said the highest classification in the city so far is only Double “A” since the Triple “A” is hard to comply.

“Especially Cebu City is known for best lechon, so we might as well comply sa requirement sa kanang balaod. Ang Cebu man gud, kaning gihimo namo not because lang sa among trabaho, it’s because we want to help the lechon industry sa Cebu City kay known man ta nindot og lechon niya karon moingon ra tag nindot niya ang facility diay hugaw so maulawan gihapon ta,” she said. —  FPL (FREEMAN)