The first of its kind in the Sultanate
Muscat Municipality sets up the "mobile slaughterhouse" at the livestock market in Al-Ma`bila
• The Mobile Slaughterhouse is dedicated to the slaughter of sheep, with a capacity of up to 50 sacrifices per hour.
• It utilizes numbering mechanism to ensure confidence and organization, with providing bags at no charge.
• The Municipality invites everyone to avoid the random slaughtering and rely on slaughterhouses.
• 100 Specialists to work in the Bushar Slaughterhouse on two shifts to ensure speed and quality.
By Ibrahim Al-Hassani
Muscat Municipality has enhanced its readiness to receive EID AL-ADHA through the set-up of the integrated healthy "Mobile Slaughterhouse". The demand for sacrifices during Eid Al-Adha ritual is doubled.
Dr. Shawki bin Abdulrahman Al-Zadjali, Director of Slaughterhouses in Muscat Municipality, has affirmed that the new slaughterhouse is the first of its kind in the Sultanate of Oman. The Municipality has sought solutions for random slaughtering practices that spread in the areas and neighborhoods, especially on the Feast days and taken advantage of the international experiences in this field. It provided a mobile slaughterhouse with healthy specification and high working efficiency. It becomes operational on next Sunday, October 13th (i.e. 48 hours before the Feast). With its 12 meters long and 4.5 meters wide, the state-of-the-art slaughterhouse is a room containing unfixed items that can be moved and re-used in any location. It is equipped and integrated with various slaughter and skinning tools.
"The slaughterhouse is dedicated to the reception of sheep and cattle. It will be developed in the future for the slaughter of cows, camels. The capacity of the slaughterhouse is ranging between 40 to 50 sacrifices per hour. It could, however, increase up to 55 sacrifices with additional workers." Explained Dr. Shawqi Al-Zadjali. "The slaughterhouse is set up on an equipped area of 2,000 square meters at the livestock market in Al-Ma`bila Al-Janubiyyah due to its proximity to the market place and being a vital space. Also, parking of vehicles is provided for easy access to the slaughterhouse of the Main Street. The site has been prepared, tiled with interlaced bricks, provided with umbrellas and necessary regulations" he added.
The slaughterhouse has a lounge for slaughtering and skinning, a supervision bureau, an office of accounting, a waste and skin collection area, toilets dedicated to the slaughter crew, a laundry for customers, an outdoor shaded recreation lounge with seats for customers, and a small internal indoor conditioned lounge.
A team of 12 butchers, two veterinarians, a worker supervisor, a traffic organizer, and accountants work in the slaughterhouse. Moreover, one riyal is the slaughter fee and the carcass can be divided into eight parts. In the future, smaller slicing service will be provided, and the slaughtering process will be performed on an equipped board instead of the ground.
The Director of the Department of Slaughterhouses explains that the Municipality has already introduced a numbering system for livestock this year to ensure confidence and delivery of the sacrifice to its owner without mistakes, errors or confusion. This also adds further precision in organizing the slaughter by numerical sequence. The Municipality also provides customers with healthy bagging service at no charge to transport the meat after slaughtering. Working hours of the Mobile Slaughterhouse have been set as of next Sunday, October 13th, starting at 7:30 AM to 1:30 PM. The Municipality will make all efforts to run the slaughterhouse during the evening period.
"The slaughterhouses are keen on providing a healthy and safe environment for the sacrifices and their meat and ensuring they are free of any diseases or pollutants through following the highest accurate and advanced standards of health in order to monitor locally slaughtered livestock in all stages of production, from the stage of readiness until the final output, in addition to providing services in conformity with all the health specifications and conditions. Furthermore, five awareness signboards on how to buy meat, healthy meat specifications, major diseases that affect sheep and meat pollutants will be fixed in place.
Bushar Central Slaughterhouse
In this regard, Bushar Central Slaughterhouse in Muscat Municipality carries out intensive preparations. The technical team is further supported by 25 butchers, 30 workers from the departments and a number of technicians and supporters i.e. 100 doctors, observers, accountants, technicians, butchers and workers in total. Rehabilitating the sites, preparing the slaughtering spaces and preparing and maintaining the electrical and mechanical appliances used in the slaughterhouse to ensure quality and speed of work, the capacity of the livestock has recently been raised through building up new additional units, including various types of livestock (goats and sheep) at the best technical and health standards that facilitate the selection of cattle. Also, ventilated and spaced, the slaughterhouse has dedicated its capacity of the technical and human staff to work on morning and evening shifts, during the days of the Feast, in line with the extensive preparations undertaken by Muscat Municipality in various departments and units to offer reputable services to citizens and residents in the Governorate.
The veterinarians do great efforts in veterinary examination of all kinds of livestock received by the slaughterhouse. The animals are checked before and after slaughtering to ensure that they are free from any diseases and the provision of meat fit for human consumption. The veterinarian staff will also provide all the services to the customers and meat producing companies of the slaughterhouse.
Working hours of Bushar Central Slaughterhouse as of October 11th-17th on two shifts. the first shift is from 7:30 AM to 1:30 PM, and dedicated to individuals, while the second evening shift is 7:30 PM till midnight and dedicated to individuals and businesses. After the Feast holiday, work will return to one single shift from 6:30 AM to 1:30 PM. The slaughter fee is approved to be one Riyal for sheep in the numbering system, two Riyals for cows and four Riyals for camels.
The Department of Slaughterhouses has coordinated with the owners of livestock selling companies to bring more livestock to ensure the availability of required quantities without any shortage. The Muscat Municipality, in turn, has performed maintenance of all the barns, provided the necessary supplies and instructed the staff of the companies to deal kindly with sacrificial animals without violence.