PAGADIAN CITY, October 12 (PIA) -– To ensure clean, safe and sound meat and meat products, the National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS-9) encouraged the locals to have their animals buthered in an accredited slaughterhouse.
NMIS9 regional technical director Arturo De Jesus Jr., in Tuesday’s media forum hosted by the Philippine Information Agency at New Roxan Hotel here, said “since then NMIS has been strictly implementing its policy in terms of the management, collection and analysis of data on the number of animals slaughtered, volume and quality of meat produced in all meat establishments in the region.
De Jesus said NMIS, as the sole national controlling authority on meat and meat product inspection and meat hygiene, is strictly implementing R.A. 9296 otherwise known as “Meat Inspection Code of the Philippines” to any person, firm or corporation engaged in the business of slaughtering, buying and selling food animals to provide safe and clean meat for human consumption.
“We are requiring all meat vendors to implement the provision of the law by bringing their hogs and cattles to the slaughter facility to guarantee all consumers safe and good quality meat products in the market,” De Jesus said.
De Jesus encouraged the public to have their food animals slaughtered in the slaughterhouse. He observed that during special occasions like wedding, birthday, etc., it has been a traditional practice that the food animals are just slaughtered at individual houses. “It did not pass through the slaughterhouse for checking and proper inspection by the meat inspector which poses risk to human health,” De Jesus added.
The NMIS chief said while his office will observe “Meat Safety Consciousness Week” on October 17-21 on the theme “Matatag na Batas, Ligtas na karne and Katumbas,” he also called on the public to be vigilant and to faithfully follow meat inspection laws.
De Jesus said the celebration, which coincides with the 39th founding anniversary of the NMIS, emphasizes consumers’ safety and well being in the light of various threats to human health wrought by meat from questionable origin.