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Script: Statutory and Regulatory Requirements for Humane Handling Part 1 |
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Intro:
Welcome to USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service podcast. Each episode
will bring you cutting edge news and information about how FSIS is working to ensure public
health protection through food safety. While we’re on the job, you can rest assured that
your meat, poultry, and processed egg products are safe, wholesome, properly labeled,
and packaged correctly. So turn up your volume and listen in.
Host:
Hello and welcome! I’m Paul Koscak from FSIS. Today we’re starting a seven-part series
on humane handling and slaughter.
The series will provide some useful tips and information for managers of small slaughter
operations on how to comply with Agency regulations and ensure that livestock are treated
humanely.
Joining me in the studio is Joan Collins, a program manager in the Office of Field Operations.
She assists senior program officials in providing guidance and direction to FSIS District
Offices throughout the country, ensuring that meat, poultry, and egg products are produced
in accordance with the statutes and the Agency’s food safety regulations.
Joan has been with FSIS for more than 20 years and has a great deal of experience training
front line supervisors on the statutes, Rules of Practice and administrative enforcement
. She will get us started with her overview of the FSIS statutory and regulatory responsibilities
for humane handling and slaughter of livestock.
Welcome, Joan.
Guest:
Thank you, Paul. I’m glad to be here.
Host:
Joan, FSIS considers humane methods of handling animal and humane slaughter operations
a top priority. Why?
Guest:
The use of humane methods in the handling of livestock prevents needless suffering for
animals and results in safer working conditions for plant employees.
It also improves the quality of meat products, and reduces the risk of significant financial
loss to meat packers. Plus, it’s required by the law.
Host:
And, what is this law?
Guest:
It’s the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, or HMSA, of 1978. The Act requires the humane
handling and slaughter of livestock in connection with slaughter of all food animals slaughtered
in USDA inspected plants. This includes cattle, calves, horses, mules, sheep, goats, swine,
and other livestock.
Host:
How does FSIS ensure that the requirements are being followed?
Guest:
FSIS inspectors are present during slaughter operations at each plant to verify that the
establishments are complying with the Act.
Host:
Where can a plant manager find the regulatory requirements for humane slaughter, as well
as some additional references about it?
Guest:
The regulations for humane slaughter are in the
Title 9 Code of Federal Regulations Part 313, titled Humane Slaughter of Livestock.
Additional Agency guidance is available through directives and notices, located on the
FSIS Web site at www.fsis.usda.gov.
Also, a Federal Register Notice, titled “Humane Handling and Slaughter Requirements
and the Merits of a Systematic Approach to Meet Such Requirements,” Docket Number 04-013N,
sets out a systematic approach to humane slaughter that FSIS strongly encourages plants
to adopt.
Host:
What is meant by “a systematic approach” to humane slaughter?
Guest:
To implement a systematic approach to humane slaughter, the plant should regularly monitor
how well they are doing with their humane slaughter procedures.
For example, the plant might have records on employee training related to humane handling
procedures, or records on the maintenance of stunning equipment.
In case there is some failure of the plant’s procedures to handle livestock humanely,
based on the systematic process, the plant will investigate the cause of the failure and
take actions to prevent the cause from happening again.
The systematic approach is not required, but it is strongly encouraged.
Host:
Does FSIS have any examples that would be helpful in understanding the different aspects
of humane handling and slaughter?
Guest:
Well, FSIS has published a number of Humane Interactive Knowledge Exchange, or HIKE,
scenarios. The HIKEs are good reference material and demonstrate the thought process that
should be used when determining compliance. The HIKE scenarios are available on the FSIS
Web site at www.fsis.usda.gov.
Host:
Thanks, Joan, for the regulatory overview of humane handling and slaughter, and thanks
to all of you for listening. Join us next time as we focus on humane handling at the plant.
Outro:
Well, that’s all for this episode. We’d like your feedback on our podcast. Or if you
have ideas for future podcasts, send us an e-mail at
podcast@fsis.usda.gov. To learn more about food safety, try our web site at
www.fsis.usda.gov. Thanks for tuning
in.
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Last Modified: March 31, 2009 |
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