Lack of Small Abattoirs

[holwellcourtfarm]

Market share is the root of all evil.

Spot on.

 

[ShooTa]

curious with your trailer - does it have a chiller section once processed ?

and yep - im lucky having 2 within 35 mins - it used to be 3... i feel bad for anyone in the borders... and at least further north you have the can bury livestock issues... not being able to complete the circle is really hurting lifecycle systems - where on farm abbatoiry is really needed imho..... so that trailer is ACE!

 

[holwellcourtfarm]

It is collected via gravity and a fresh water rinse into a tub or tank depending on the contents. It is then hauled to my compost pile where it becomes a soil amendment over a couple seasons of cooking.

That would be illegal here. Composting of such things is no longer allowed.

 

[delilah]

The big companies don’t want the hassle

It's more insidious than not wanting the hassle.
Our corner shop has been struggling to keep themselves stocked with milk. They have always sold 1,2 and 4 pint bottles, collected from Booker (ie Tesco). They can no longer get the 2 pint bottle, and have to phone in advance to reserve 1 and 4 pint. Booker blame 'supply issues'. Does anyone think for a split second that Tesco stores are suffering similar supply issues ? Tesco have used, and continue to use, corona/ Brexit/ shortage of drivers as excuses to tighten their grip on the food chain. They don't want you going to your independent corner shop, they want you in their stores or on their website.
The big abattoirs will be operating to the exact self same agenda. Market share is the root of all evil.

 

[sheepdogtrail]

That would be illegal here. Composting of such things is no longer allowed.

It is illegal here as well if it is not properly managed. I can not pick any spot to compost. It needs to be out of the flood plane. It is not allowed to seep into any water source. That is doable for me.

 

[Humble Village Farmer]

It's a pity that all the local ones went before we left the EU, whose rules and regs seem to have been the catalyst for all the closures. That and cheap labour and bigger operations controlled by the supermarkets.

 

[sheepdogtrail]

curious with your trailer - does it have a chiller section once processed ?

Yes. It has to have a chiller section. In my case it is a separate trailer that docks to the side of the processing trailer with a air tight seal. The cost of the chiller trailer was included in my overall cost.

I have been in trailers where the chiller section is forward of the processing section and is accessed through a set of saloon doors. In my case, I needed something different.

I needed to chill and store up to a week if needed so I insulated a separate trailer to R49 and use a AC rated at 10,500 BTU with a coolbot. I have a backup AC installed in case the primary goes down. The backup does operate if the primary is running.

The coolbot allows me to take a ordinary household AC and lower its operating temperature to around 37F.

 

[Red Fred]

Unfortunately have had to stop (at least for the time being). We have 2 but both are an hour away. I was sending a trailer full of pigs for direct sale weekly and built a small sheep flock to add a few lambs to that.

We are in the same boat, we just keep a few saddlebacks and would like to make more of them, but the only pig abbatoirs are an hour from us in either direction. It simply doesn't stack up when I have to drive from one side of Dorset to the other with a few weaners, and realistically takes out a whole morning, then another 40 or 50 mile trip to collect the meat. It is a real shame as home made sausies are simply the best. I treat it as a little extra for family and friends, but economically it is a no goer.

 

[Yale]

Yes. It has to have a chiller section. In my case it is a separate trailer that docks to the side of the processing trailer with a air tight seal. The cost of the chiller trailer was included in my overall cost.

I have been in trailers where the chiller section is forward of the processing section and is accessed through a set of saloon doors. In my case, I needed something different.

I needed to chill and store up to a week if needed so I insulated a separate trailer to R49 and use a AC rated at 10,500 BTU with a coolbot. I have a backup AC installed in case the primary goes down. The backup does operate if the primary is running. View attachment 974586

The coolbot allows me to take a ordinary household AC and lower its operating temperature to around 37F.

That’s a neat set up.

Probably stupid regulations would not allow it in the UK.

 

[holwellcourtfarm]

That’s a neat set up.

Probably stupid regulations would not allow it in the UK.

That's alot of talk of mobile units in the UK. It'll only work if a lower compliance burden is allowed though. Having to have one of Eville &Jones's veterinary inspectors on site while killing would be a huge cost for the small throughput.

 

[sheepdogtrail]

Having to have one of Eville &Jones's veterinary inspectors on site while killing would be a huge cost for the small throughput.

We also need to have federal inspector on site while we are processing. The cost to do that is paid for through our federal tax dollars into the USDA. If I require the inspector to work overtime. I am on the hook for that. Overtime is billed at time and half.

 

[sheepdogtrail]

Probably stupid regulations would not allow it in the UK.

I thought the same thing here before I looked into it. As it turned out, I was able to engineer a mobile unit that meet all of the guidelines and laws. I had to read the guidelines, laws and fully comprehend them, which was something that I normally would not worry with. But in the case of me wanting to keep doing my passion, I had to think out of the box. Which I am very good at.

 

[holwellcourtfarm]

We also need to have federal inspector on site while we are processing. The cost to do that is paid for through our federal tax dollars into the USDA. If I require the inspector to work overtime. I am on the hook for that. Overtime is billed at time and half.

Ours are fully charged to the abattoir at the time.

 

[Hilly]

No proper slaughter facilities in the Scottish borders for about ten years, absolutely ridiculous given the amount of stock in the area. For private kills you need to go down to County Durham or along the M8 towards Glasgow. My embryo regenerative grazing/rare breed suckler herd would fit ideally with retailing beef at a premium but current situation makes that difficult.
If they start changing permitted journey times without doing something to help slaughterhouses, then it will be a real double dunt.

I know of a farmer who new slaughterhouse built on his farm but lack of slaughter men vets and bureaucracy means as far as I’m aware it’s only been used once or twice , damned shame .

 

[sheepdogtrail]

I know of a farmer who new slaughterhouse built on his farm but lack of slaughter men vets and bureaucracy means as far as I’m aware it’s only been used once or twice , damned shame .

That is a damned shame.

Is there no interest from farmers wanting to process their own animals? Who sets the bureaucracy? Is it DEFRA? or is it regulated via local councils.

 

[kiwi pom]

The way this thread reads, there seems to be a market for locally produced and slaughtered meat and there seems to be farmers who want to supply it, its just the small slaughterhouse part that's lacking?
So why don't a group of local farmers build one if the demand is there?
How long do you have to train and what's involved in becoming qualified as a slaughterman?
Surely the problem is there for you to fix?

 

[Hilly]

That is a damned shame.

Is there no interest from farmers wanting to process their own animals? Who sets the bureaucracy? Is it DEFRA? or is it regulated via local councils.

Not sure I don’t know much about it , I don’t think he must have realised what he was getting into when he built it .

 

[Hilly]

The way this thread reads, there seems to be a market for locally produced and slaughtered meat and there seems to be farmers who want to supply it, its just the small slaughterhouse part that's lacking?
So why don't a group of local farmers build one if the demand is there?
How long do you have to train and what's involved in becoming qualified as a slaughterman?
Surely the problem is there for you to fix?

At a guess same reason they all closed , their used to be three that know of local to me but all pushed out one way or other .

 

[Woolless]

I know of a farmer who new slaughterhouse built on his farm but lack of slaughter men vets and bureaucracy means as far as I’m aware it’s only been used once or twice , damned shame .

Near Kelso?

 

[Woolless]

The way this thread reads, there seems to be a market for locally produced and slaughtered meat and there seems to be farmers who want to supply it, its just the small slaughterhouse part that's lacking?
So why don't a group of local farmers build one if the demand is there?
How long do you have to train and what's involved in becoming qualified as a slaughterman?
Surely the problem is there for you to fix?

Your analysis is spot on. However, difficult to make the numbers stack up for a small set up and that's laying aside staffing issues and regulatory issues.

Anyone involved in the slaughter process up until the animal is dead needs to undergo a formal training course and on completion have a certificate of competence issued by the Food Standards Agency. For operatives further down the line, it's a case of basic hygiene training and then on the job for specific tasks.