Gwangju City Strengthens Livestock Product Safety Management Ahead of Chuseok

Daily Inspections at Two Slaughterhouses Until October 4
"Epidemic and Hygiene Checks... Supplying Safe Livestock Products"

The Gwangju Institute of Health and Environment conducting safety inspections on livestock products. Photo by Gwangju Institute of Health and Environment

The Gwangju Health and Environment Research Institute announced on September 12 that, in preparation for increased demand for livestock products ahead of the Chuseok holiday, it will designate the 20-day period from September 15 to October 4 as the "Special Livestock Product Measures Period for Slaughterhouses."

This special initiative will be implemented at two slaughterhouses in the Gwangju area. The institute plans to strengthen hygiene management at slaughterhouses and enhance safety inspections of livestock products in order to preemptively block the distribution of harmful livestock products and provide safe products to citizens.

In particular, to ensure a stable supply of livestock products during the Chuseok holiday, slaughter inspections will be conducted from 5:30 a.m. even on the holiday dates of October 3 and 4. The Health and Environment Research Institute will thoroughly inspect pre- and post-slaughter processes, verify vaccinations for foot-and-mouth disease and swine fever, check for infections such as lumpy skin disease in cattle and African swine fever, and confirm the disinfection of both the interior and exterior of slaughterhouses as well as vehicles entering the premises. In addition, the institute will check the operation of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) system, the status of hygiene management, and compliance with the livestock product traceability system.

Monitoring inspections for livestock products will be expanded from once to twice a week, with reinforced testing for antibiotic residues and microbial contamination. If any livestock products are found to be unfit for consumption, they will be immediately discarded at the slaughterhouse to completely prevent their distribution in the market. During last year’s Chuseok special measures period, inspections were conducted on a total of 27,150 cattle and pigs, resulting in the disposal of 13 cases of non-compliant livestock products.

Jung Hyuncheol, Director of the Gwangju Health and Environment Research Institute, stated, "For Chuseok, we will do our utmost to ensure that citizens can trust and consume safe livestock products by strengthening hygiene management at slaughterhouses and safety inspections of livestock products." He added, "We will continue to make every effort to establish order in the distribution of livestock products and ensure food safety going forward."