Gwangju Institute of Health and Environment Strengthens Livestock Product Hygiene Inspections Ahead of Lunar New Year

Daily Inspections at Slaughterhouses from the 13th to the 27th
Compliance with Safety Management Certification and Livestock Product Traceability System

A researcher from Gwangju Institute of Health and Environment is inspecting livestock products collected from a slaughterhouse. Provided by Gwangju Institute of Health and Environment

The Gwangju Institute of Health and Environment announced on the 11th that it will strengthen hygiene inspections of livestock products at local slaughterhouses to ensure the safe and sanitary distribution of livestock products ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.

The institute has designated the 15-day period from the 13th to the 27th as the "Special Hygiene Measures Period for Slaughterhouse Livestock Products" and will conduct hygiene inspections at two local slaughterhouses.

As livestock product consumption is expected to increase significantly during the holiday, the institute will begin slaughter inspections from 5:30 a.m. to ensure a smooth supply of livestock products. In addition, inspections will also be conducted on Saturdays, which is not the usual practice.

The hygiene inspections will include daily guidance and checks on compliance with Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) standards, sanitary management of slaughterhouse facilities, hygienic handling of livestock products, and compliance with the livestock product traceability system.

In particular, thorough inspections of animals and livestock products before and after slaughter will be conducted to prevent the distribution of livestock products infected with animal diseases such as bovine tuberculosis, lumpy skin disease, and African swine fever. Tests for antibiotic residues and microbial contamination will be increased from once to twice a week. If any livestock product is found unfit for consumption, it will be immediately discarded at the slaughterhouse to prevent it from entering the market.

During last year’s holiday measures period, the institute inspected a total of 28,279 cattle and pigs, detected seven cases of non-compliant livestock products, and disposed of them.

Jung Hyuncheol, Director of the Gwangju Institute of Health and Environment, said, "We will do our best to ensure the safe and sanitary production of livestock products so that citizens can purchase them with confidence during the Lunar New Year holiday."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.