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

Poultry Regulations, 2006

Part V : Humane Treatment of Poultry and Slaughter Process

71. Chilling

 

 

[See also regulation 26; 28; 37; 38; 39]

 

1) Air chillers, used for primary or in-process chilling, must be loaded correctly and utilised at the correct line speed to ensure proper air movement around carcasses at the specified air temperature to obtain a deep breast muscle temperature of not more than 10°C at exit.

 

2) Water immersion chillers, used for primary or in-process chilling, must -
a) utilise a system of mechanically propelling carcasses through chilled 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;
b) continuously replace the chilled water at a rate of 1 litre of water per bird;
c) be of sufficient capacity to maintain the specified hourly throughput of the plant;
d) chill birds to a deep breast muscle temperature not exceeding 10° C when leaving the chiller;
e) be operated so that the amount of water absorbed by a carcass passing through the water immersion chiller will not exceed 8% of the body weight of such carcass; and
f) be emptied and cleaned after each shift, provided where two shifts are worked per day, the chiller may be cleaned at the end of the second shift.

 

3) All poultry carcasses must be chilled to a temperature of not more than   10°C before wrapping, packing or portioning and cutting may take place.

 

4) Chilled meat must have a temperature of not be more than 4°C before it may be dispatched.

 

5) Frozen meat must have a temperature of not be more than minus 12° C before it may be dispatched.

 

6) In rural and low throughput abattoirs warm wrapping and packing of whole carcasses may be done provided that -
a) wrapped, warm carcasses must be chilled immediately after wrapping; and
b) the deep breast temperature of the wrapped poultry is not more than 4° C after overnight chilling.