QUALITY PREREQUISITES OF BUTCHERY AND MEAT BUSINESS CENTERS (CASE STUDY MOROGORO MUNICIPAL)

A butchery and its qualifications

Butchery is place (special room) where carcasses are sold. This room should contain refrigerator for keeping remained meat, electrical fan or air condition, facilities for cutting carcasses, sink  for washing hand together with suitable facilities  such as
hooks and knifes (stainless steel). Also the walls and the floor should be vanished with white tiles, there must be air and dust proof automatic closing doors and windows to restrict the entry of dust and flies and there must be a clean toilet for working personnel. The working personnel, (the butcher) must have and wear a white over coat and must be health checked for at least after three months.

fans for condition the air in the butchery.

Meat hanged by using hooks.

 A butcher
A butcher is a professional who slaughters animals and dresses the meat for sale. Practitioners of this traditional trade can be found all over the world, ranging from supermarket butchers, who typically deal with already slaughtered carcasses, to traditional rural butchers, who may travel to farms to butcher animals individually for their owners. 
 

A white overcoat for a Butcher. 

Air and dust proof glass door and windows

The condition of the butcheries in the study area. 
Butcheries are categorized into grade depending on the requirements and services provided. Other butcheries are at the intermediate grade, other below standard and other are standard. Although some of the butcheries visited were standard, most of the butcheries were found to be below standards due to the failure to abide to the prerequisites given by the TFDA. For example, some butcheries had no meat cutting saws, had nonworking fans and refrigerators, others used logs as a surface for cutting meat by using an axe (a very serious source of contamination), also most of the butcheries had no stainless steel equipment such as knifes and hooks; such conditions place the meat in the high risk of being contaminated.
 

A log and axe 

 

Nonworking freezer due to poor management.

Poor meat handling in a butchery

Typical stainless steel knife.

Therefore, there is the need for the government to establish routine inspection and to insure measures are implemented for the secure the health of consumers.

Stainless steel hooks.

TFDA has establish some quality prerequisites which have to be implemented by butcher shop countrywide as stated by food act/law 2003 which have  some main attributes and under each main attributes there are specific attribute. The butcher are assessed under the attributes and given a grade according to the score marks obtained in each attribute.

Meat cutting saw.

For further clarification watch the video below

Table showing Butchery grading criteria  

Main attribute	Specific questions	Marks (%)	Grading  criteria
A. Building structure and environment	1. The building should be permanently constructed with not less the 3 m length and 2.5 m width 2. The floor should be tough with no crakes. 3. The inside wall should be tiled at not less than 1.2m from the floor. The remaining part should be furnished with white colour 4. The outside walls should be furnished with white colour 5. Presence of wide glass window 6. Presence of white ceiling roof 7. Presence entrance door which is both dusts and insect proof 8. Presence of water sink for through washing of serving tools 9. Presence of toilet for attendants 10. Presence of electric fan or air condition      Sub-total		XA      ≤ 50%       Below  standard; 60% ≤ XA ≤ 80% Intermediate 90% ≤ XA ≤100% Standard (Standard)
B. Working Personnel’s	1. Attendants should be healthy checked and approved to serve 2. Each attendant should have two pair of protecting gears which should be always clean   Sub-total		XB =100%; Standard XB < 100%; Below Standard
C. Working utensils	1. Presence of adequate handle-cutting facilities such as knives 2. Presence of electrical beef cutting saws instead of tree logs 3. Carcass should be hanged using appropriate hooks 4.Presence of working refrigerator for storage of unsold beef Sub-total		XC ≤ 50% ; Below standard              75% ≤ XC ≤ 90%; Intermediate XC = 100% ; Standard

                 
The whole explanation is summarized in the audio below





For more details read the TFDA act 2003 below.

TFDA ACT