Meat Safety Act, 2000 (Act No. 40 of 2000)

Poultry Regulations, 2006

Part II : Requirements for the Registration of Poultry Abattoirs

C. Hygiene management practices and related matters

(1) Offal handling

29. Red offal
Purchase cart Previous page Return to chapter overview Next page

 

 

1)Consists of the neck, cleaned gizzard, liver, spleen and heart.

 

2)Must be washed, packed and chilled without delay-
a)to reach a temperature of 4°C or less within 12 hours of evisceration; but
b)it need not be chilled at the abattoir if dispatched on a continuous basis to the chilling facilities, the proximity of which must not compromise hygiene standards and be approved by the provincial executive.

 

3)When small spin chillers are used for the washing of red offal, the level must be maintained by adding water which may contain a bactericidal substance, which complies with the requirements of the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act, 1972 (Act No. 54 of 1972) and is approved per protocol by the provincial executive officer, at levels not harmful or injurious to health, at a temperature not more than 4° C at a rate of 1 litre per kilogram.

 

4)Bile contamination must be avoided when removing gall bladders from livers.

 

5)No red offal may be stored with or come into contact with rough offal.

 

6)Where red offal is packed in cartons, containers or plastic bags for dispatch, chilling or freezing-
a)it may only be done in a separate area or room and equipment must be provided for this function;
b)storage facilities for clean empty bags or containers, for a day's use, must be provided; and
c)bulk storage facilities must be provided for packing material.

 

7)If any red offal is to be included in a chilled carcass, it must be wrapped and chilled to not more than minus 2° C before inserting into the carcass.

 

8)Gizzards must be opened, emptied, the mucosal lining removed and washed under running water without contaminating the surrounding area and products.

 

9)Cartoned offal may not be stored in the same chiller as carcasses or uncartoned offal.