Marks of Inspection Each company that manufactures products that contain 2% or more meat and/or poul- try and that are sold and shipped into com- merce beyond state lines must come under FSIS regulations. Companies must apply for FSIS inspection prior to any production. Once inspection is granted by FSIS, a com- pany is assigned an establishment number to be inserted in the inspection legends. Inspec- tion legends with the establishment numbers are the marks of inspection that are branded directly onto the products or preprinted on the product packaging. These marks of inspection indicate to consignees and con- sumers that FSIS has inspected these prod- ucts and they have passed inspection. In some instances, such as canned prod- ucts, the establishment number is not within the inspection legend but on the lid of the can or elsewhere on a package along with the production code. The marks of inspection on packages or cans are used to facilitate tracing the origins of the products. Inspection legends are circular except for those used for equine meat, which are pen- tagonal (Ocial Marks, Devices, and Certifi- cates, 2023). On the slaughter lines, carcasses and oal (i.e., the edible products harvested from the viscera, heads, and kidneys) that pass inspec- tion are hot branded or rubber stamped with edible blue ink by the companies or placed in packaging preprinted with the marks of inspection. Of note, marks of inspection are placed by the companies after the products have passed inspection. FSIS inspectors do not apply marks of inspection. Products or product parts that do not pass inspection are slashed or ink-stamp branded “condemned” by FIs. The compa- nies must reroute, denature, and discard the condemned products. When FIs detect that possibly an entire mammal unit (e.g., head, viscera, carcass) is diseased, it is tagged to be rerouted and segregated for veterinary disposition by a PHV. If the unit passes PHV inspection, it is placed back into production. If a product passes inspection for cooking only, a special brand is applied to indicate its cooking-only status, and the carcass must be cooked at that plant before being sent out into commerce. In red meat inspection, only PHVs can condemn entire units. On poultry slaughter lines, FIs can condemn entire bird
units, which are placed in “condemned” con- tainers and disposed of. All animal units that have passed ante- mortem (i.e., before slaughter) inspection are inspected again postmortem (i.e., after slaughter). All animal units that have passed postmortem inspection on the slaughter floor are subject to reinspection at any point before the products are shipped into commerce (Reinspection, Retention, and Disposal of Meat and Poultry Products at Ocial Estab- lishments, 2023). Companies are given a chance to recondition failed products to regu- latory standards, if possible. In fabrication companies, CSIs condemn products or retain them for recondition- ing to acceptable standards and attach a tag indicating condemnation or retention. They then inform company management of the action and the reason why. Not every step in the process or every finished product is organoleptically (i.e., involving use of vision, touch, smell) inspected by an FSIS inspector at fabrication. Inspection legends on contain- ers and packaging represent only the fact that the meat and poultry products have been pro- duced under FSIS regulations. A dierent brand is used for exporting meat and poultry products to other countries. The companies stamp the boxes with square export marks that contain the certificate numbers for the products being shipped. An export verification inspection is performed by FSIS on each lot of products to be shipped overseas, including to Mexico and Canada. This inspection is to verify that the packaged product is in good condition and meets the requirements of both FSIS and the countries where the product is to be shipped.
by company employees for the inspector to observe. Livestock that FSIS find abnormal are moved to segregation pens and PHVs determine their disposition. Then livestock are either euthanized on the spot; denatured and destroyed; or tagged for disposition at postmortem with ear tags labeled U.S. Sus- pect, USDA Reactor, or U.S. Condemned. Livestock are identified with initialed pen cards informing postmortem FIs that the live- stock contained in these pen numbers have undergone antemortem inspection. More details regarding antemortem inspection are found in the regulations for red meat (Ante- mortem Inspection, 2023) and regulations for poultry (Subpart J—Ante Mortem Inspec- tion, 2023).
Postmortem Responsibilities of Slaughter Companies
The slaughter companies prepare each ani- mal—that has either passed antemortem inspection or has been labeled suspect, reactor, or condemned—for a postmortem inspection by FIs. Once the slaughter com- panies corral the livestock to the knocking box, the livestock are humanely stunned, shackled with the heads toward the floor, and suspended by chains. Carotid arteries are severed to exsanguinate the animals. After the animals have suciently bled out, the cadavers are transferred to overhead rails, suspended by the hind feet. With the heads facing downward, hooves (or poultry feet) and hides (or poultry feathers) are removed. Then the cadavers are decapitated, and the heads are placed on hooks attached to a wall or on racks, in preparation for inspection by FIs. Once the heads pass inspection, edi- ble tissues such as cheek meat and tongue are harvested and trimmed, then boxed or placed in temporary containers, and chilled by the company. The rectums and esophagi are tied o to prevent spillage of the contents (i.e., ingesta) during evisceration. Market hog cadavers may be dehaired (i.e., hair is removed but not the entire hide) and scalded. Poultry is defeathered and scalded. The scalded and dehaired cadavers are polished, then par- tially opened to prepare for evisceration. The sternums of the mammal cadavers are sawed open to facilitate evisceration. Company per- sonnel eviscerate the cadavers and place the viscera on pans for inspection by FIs. The
Slaughter Inspections
Antemortem Responsibilities of FSIS Before livestock (mammals and birds) are slaughtered for human consumption, they must be inspected while alive by FSIS inspec- tors on the premises of registered companies to ensure that 1) only wholesome animals are slaughtered for human consumption and 2) the livestock are slaughtered in a humane manner. FSIS takes humane handling of live- stock seriously (Humane Slaughter of Live- stock, 2023). The livestock are observed at rest in the pens and then are slowly driven in motion
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