Death knell sounds for slaughterhouse
Thursday 25th March 2010, 2:29PM GMT.
Commerce and Employment has been told that it has until 2012 to find a new site for a slaughterhouse. (Picture by Peter Frankland.)
THE historic slaughterhouse on the Castle Emplacement must close by December 2012 and be replaced by a more modern and humane site, according to Commerce and Employment.
Minister Carla McNulty-Bauer told the States yesterday that the building would soon fall foul of international animal welfare laws and her department was looking to build another, or the economy could suffer.
Deputy John Gollop put her on the spot during question time and asked whether the building could then be vacated to be used for some other purpose.
He said farmers would be concerned that their animals could not be slaughtered locally.
‘As of last week, Environmental Health made it clear it will be compulsory for the island’s slaughterhouse facility to meet full European standards,’ said Deputy McNulty Bauer. There was a deadline, she added.
‘That is the closure of the facility in St Peter Port, once and for all, by December 2012.
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“‘As of last week, Environmental Health made it clear it will be compulsory for the island’s slaughterhouse facility to meet full European standards,’”!!!!???? Last time I checked Guernsey, nor any of the Channel Islands are in the EU. And we don’t export meat products to the EU(SSR) or even the UK. What right do either of them have at all to dictate our standards?! It is time for the islands to tell that lot to take a hike.
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Ken, they are talking about bringing the facilities in-line with Europe to meet ‘international animal welfare laws’. The way I see it, they are using EU standards as a guideline.
There is nothing wrong with wanting to improve the facilities, and we shouldn’t let bigotry and nostalgia get in the way.
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Ken, I’m a bit puzzled. DID you mean to say that a slaughterhouse that caters for the Guernsey market exclusively doesn’t have to meet the most exacting standards because barely adequate is good enough for Guernsey, and that Sarnians are unlikely to be bothered by the occasional death from food poisoning?
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The slaughterhouse is only there due to past market days and the export of our beef and cattle.
First Beach (Havelet) is an ideally sheltered bay. The slaughterhouse would make a great place for an outdoor/sea activity centre with nearby slipway access.
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In all the decades that the old slaughterhouse was in operation how many cases of food poisoning, BSE contamination or other enviromental health problems were there?
The answer is almost certainly none (but please correct me if I am wrong).
What is the point in spending a load of money confirming to EU standards when a) we are not in the EU and b) there isn’t actually an environmental health problem?
We are a self governing island and we do not have to bow down to every nonsensical piece of legislation spewed out of Brussels – how about our States members trying to use their own common sense and discretion on these issues?
Lets not forget that this is the same EU that thinks discarding tonnes of perfectly good fish is a great way to protect the marine environment. Why should we automatically assume that every thing they say is in our best interests – it ain’t necessarily so.
Rather than spend millions on a new slaughterhouse why not do the old one up and spend the surplus on hiring a couple of food scientists who can approve our local beef for local consumption.
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It is used as a guide to follow in best practice standards & nothing more. The island does not need to be governed by the EU for us to cherry pick what is good & bad from their list of never ending policies.
If there was an outbreak of anything that could be traced back to the slaughterhouse the lawyers would have a field day due to the standards & conditions.
It is a step forward & in the right direction. Better investing & future proofing than paying out huge sums in lawyers fees & compensating victims.
I am finding this site difficult at the moment with the amount of sad whingers around. Happy ranting at all & sundry because many have little better to occupy their time with.
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