A recent study published in Food Control evaluated and compared the level of conformity with food safety requirements in cattle and pig slaughterhouses. The study was conducted to address a knowledge gap regarding food safety assessments in the qualification procedures of suppliers of meat to processing plants. The study’s researchers hypothesized that there is a difference in the level of food safety conformity with audit requirements between type and size of slaughterhouse, and note that pig slaughterhouses can process an average of 10 times more animals than cattle slaughterhouses. The study’s findings were consistent with the researchers’ hypothesis, as cattle slaughterhouses were significantly more adherent to food safety requirements than pig slaughterhouses.
Slaughterhouses supplying beef and pork to a large-scale meat processing plant were audited in their qualification procedures. The study states that qualification procedures can be considered as a food safety risk management tool, since supplier qualification is necessary to eliminate suppliers that do not meet food safety criteria. Supplier qualification can be performed when raw meat is admitted to a processing plant, either by supplier self-assessment or, most effectively, as an internal audit of slaughterhouses by third-party auditors.