City officials are now awaiting the specifications for a proposed permanent animal slaughter site in Nyanga.
Informal meat trading is a burgeoning industry in many of Cape Town’s townships, but there are numerous problems, including insufficient sanitary facilities; poor waste management; disposal of blood and body fluids from slaughtered animals into the storm-water system; lack of drainage for the disposal of waste water from the taps; and contamination of food products from dust and dirt.
Partners involved in the Nyanga Informal Meat Traders Project have already instituted several measures to improve the situation, including education and awareness, regular cleaning of the area and storm-water system, rodent baiting, and routine monitoring of the trading stalls by the City’s Environmental Health Department.
“The construction of a formal animal slaughter site is the next big step because we cannot continue to have animal by-products end up in the storm-water system. It is a risk to public health, but also means the system is at risk of blockages which have other unintended consequences,” said the City’s mayoral committee member for health, Councillor Siyabulela Mamkeli, in a statement on the city council’s website.
A pre-feasibility study was conducted in 2014 to determine the potential for the introduction of a permanent animal slaughter site or a mobile abattoir. The study included a total of 113 traders in and around Nyanga.
On average, nearly 2,000 animals are slaughtered weekly, including chickens, cows, sheep and pigs. The majority of the respondents indicated they would prefer a permanent slaughtering structure rather than a mobile truck that is close to the main trading areas in Nyanga, as they would not be able to afford additional expenses to transport meat to and from the abattoir.
“The survey was an eye-opener because now we have an understanding of how the meat traders work, what their needs are, and how they would like to see things take shape going forward,” said Mamkeli.
“More importantly, we have a mandate from the traders themselves, so we can confidently move on to the next step by looking at the specifications for a slaughter site that satisfies all concerned.”
The pre-feasibility study has also suggested that the abattoir’s design features should include designated sections for slaughtering different livestock, as well as sections for traders who simply butcher meat into smaller portions to prevent health risks like cross-contamination between carcases and to ensure more efficient slaughtering.
The respondents also expressed an interest in basic facilities such as sinks, taps in close proximity, on-site refrigerators, and additional facilities like lockers, refuse bins and better drainage systems.
“We now have a framework for the abattoir; the next step is to start working on the details. Should this project be successful, Nyanga’s abattoir could very well become the model for how we roll out similar initiatives in other parts of the city,” added Mamkeli.