A humane feature has been introduced at the civil abattoir aimed to improve animal welfare conditions there.

The feature, a ramp leading into the emergency slaughter line, was installed by the Veterinary Affairs and Fisheries Division.

It was designed by an abattoir engineer and constructed by the maintenance workers deployed within the abattoir, to ensure that animals delivered for slaughter will not suffer unnecessary stress prior to slaughter. Due attention was given to the height of the ramp in order to maintain the unloading levels as horizontal as possible, a spokesman for the Rural Affairs and Environment Ministry said.

To complement the installation, adequate drinking facilities have been provided for all animals. Since the ramp has been in operation, animals have moved from the trucks onto the ramp and into the lairage without the need for human intervention, thus showing that the system implemented has reaped all the expected benefits, he added.

The ramp may be considered as temporary in nature. It was planned that the current slaughtering of species other than horses in the emergency slaughter line, would be moved respectively to the bovine and pig slaughter lines according to the progress of the upgrading of these lines. Various works have been commissioned to this end and should be completed by the end of the second quarter of this year.