The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has called upon all butchery owners across the country to acquire the Uganda Standard, US736:2019 Hygienic requirements for butcheries, and ensure that their premises meet hygiene standards.
UNBS held a hygiene standards sensitization meeting at its head offices in Bweyogerere with all butchery owners around Kampala, in line with their mandate of promoting standards in the use of public health and safety and the environment against dangerous and substandard products.
Rehema Meeme, standards officer at UNBS, stated that it is important to ensure the quality and safety of meat and its products to safe guard the health and safety of all Ugandan consumers.
“In our recent field inspections, we found some butcheries are built near sewerage channels, some lack appropriate sanitary facilities, and some beef carcasses are not inspected and have no approval stamp,” Meeme said.
Meeme noted that meat stays on shelves for longer periods of time, and the use of pesticide concoctions on meat to chase away flies must stop.
Awath Aburu standards officer UNBS shared the participation requirements of the standards butchery owners must adhere to and urged them to strictly follow them to avoid being penalised by the law.
Some of the guidelines highlighted were:
All butchers must possess occupation permits.
All butcheries should operate on suitably permitted premises.
All butcheries should possess a medical examination certificate.
All butchers should possess a valid trading licence.
All butchers must have a first-aid kit.
All butchers should sell only hygienic meat and products.
All butchers should use recommended insect traps.
Other hygienic guidelines given included the construction of butcheries, equipment used for personal hygiene, and the operation and transportation of meat.
They were further warned against hanging meat on ropes for display, transporting it in unauthorised meat vessels, using unauthorised disinfectants, and operating in areas with poor drainage systems, among others.
UNBS has simplified the Uganda standard US736:2019 Hygienic requirements for butcheries into easy-to-use guidelines translated into two local languages, Luganda and Swahili.
Butchery operations appreciated UNBS for the sanitation meeting and requested that similar meetings be extended to their colleagues across the country.