Upgraded Abattoir to Help Boost Meat Industry
PHILIPPINES - Senator Franklin M. Drilon and Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala recently inaugurated an upgraded P83-million ‘double-A’ abattoir or slaughterhouse in Iloilo that will pave the way to transforming the province and Western Visayas into a major livestock producer and source of quality meat and meat products.
21 November 2012
2 minute read
The upgrading of the Iloilo City slaughterhouse was initiated by Senator Drilon who shared P40M from his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), while the Department of Agriculture (DA) provided P31.5 under the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF), and the Iloilo City government pitched in P11.5M as its equity.
Further, the DA through the National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS) will allot an additional P20M next year to upgrade the Iloilo City slaughterhouse into a ‘triple A’ category, said Secretary Alcala during the facility’s inauguration, on November 16, 2012.
The abattoir is equipped with a set of modern mechanized slaughtering and cutting equipment, 50-ton cold storage facility, waste water filtration system, holding pen and meat delivery van. It is located at a 1.1-hectare complex, in Barangay Tacas, Jaro, Iloilo City.
Managed and operated by the City government of Iloilo, the abattoir is categorized and accredited by the DA-NMIS as ‘double-A,’ having been equipped with appropriate equipment and employs procedures that can slaughter livestock animals into quality, hygienic meat suitable for sale in any local or national market. The facility can slaughter up to 50 head of large animals (cattle, horse and carabao), 400 head of hogs, and 60 head of small ruminants (goat and sheep).
Secretary Alcala enjoined Iloilo farmers, livestock raisers, and meat traders to make full use of the newly-upgraded slaughterhouse, and seize the opportunity to sell and trade quality Iloilo meat products to other areas in the Visayas and major meat consumption centers, including Metro Manila. Iloilo has another ‘double-A’ slaughterhouse in Passi City.
He added that Iloilo and other major livestock producing regions in the country could export meat products to other countries, as the entire Philippines has been declared and remains free from foot-and-mouth disease (FMD).
NMIS Director Minda Manantan said the DA is eyeing to construct next year two ‘triple-A’ slaughterhouses in Luzon, and nine more ‘double-A’ abattoirs nationwide, one each in Ilocos Sur, Pangasinan, Oriental Mindoro, Marinduque, Albay, Cebu, Misamis Occidental, Davao del Sur and Sarangani.
Triple-A abattoir or facilities employ modern equipment and procedures that comply with international standards as they are accredited to churn out meat products for sale in any domestic and international markets, while an ‘A’ abattoir has minimum slaughtering equipment, and allowed to sell meat products only within the city or municipality where the abattoir is located.
TheCattleSite News Desk
