The call for mandatory CCTV in slaughterhouses and legislation to ensure vets have unrestricted access to CCTV footage has been backed by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA).
Dr Marc Cooper, head of the RSPCA farm animal department, said: “The RSPCA wholeheartedly supports calls for CCTV cameras to be mandatory in all abattoirs and for official veterinarians to have unrestricted access to footage.”
The British Veterinary Association (BVA) and Veterinary Public Health Association (VPHA) have outlined their concern that the purpose of CCTV in slaughterhouses is being undermined if vets are refused access to footage and the footage is not monitored independently of the slaughterhouse business operator.
According to Food Standards Agency (FSA) figures over 30 slaughterhouses have refused to share footage with official veterinarians working in slaughterhouses under the authority of the FSA.
Cooper added: "The welfare of farm animals at slaughter is a very important issue which is why all RSPCA Assured abattoirs have had CCTV since 2011.
"Our strict welfare standards state CCTV cameras should have a clear view and footage should be kept on site for at least three months.
"Whenever an RSPCA Assured abattoir is assessed or has an on-the-spot monitoring visit the CCTV footage is checked to ensure our standards are being met.
"There is little point in having CCTV if the footage is not readily available and being used effectively to safeguard animal welfare.”
This story was originally published on a previous version of the Meat Management website and so there may be some missing images and formatting issues.
