By Hilda Austria/PNA
MALASIQUI, Pangasinan — The National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS) office in Region 1 (Ilocos) has asked the local government units (LGUs) to construct their own slaughterhouses, or apply for accreditation of existing slaughterhouses, to ensure safety and sanitation of meat products.
“Willing kaming tumulong, may counterpart ang NMIS pero by schedule ito at inaaplyan ng mga LGUs. Once na-meet nila requirements, may financial assistance na ibibigay sa kanila (We are willing to help them with the counterpart of NMIS but it is by schedule and LGUs should apply for it. Once they meet the requirements, a financial assistance will be given to them),” said Dr. Rudio Abulencia, information officer of NMIS-1, in an interview on Friday.
Last year, some 20 LGUs received financial assistance from the Department of Agriculture (DA) through the Bottom-Up Budgeting Program.
“DA funded the improvement of their slaughterhouses for them to meet the minimum requirement for accreditation. The funding for each slaughterhouse ranges from PHP1.5 million to PHP4 million depending on the number of animals slaughtered in a certain town or city, while there are also four funded by the LGU,” Abulencia said.
A small-scale slaughterhouse in this town is also underway, funded with PHP3 million by NMIS, he added.
Abulencia added that 80 percent of all the towns and cities in the region have slaughterhouses, but some are not yet accredited by NMIS and are just locally registered.
“We encourage the LGUs to apply for accreditation so that they could deliver meat products that underwent inspection by authorities and we could prevent spread of diseases. Having an accredited slaughterhouse could also increase their revenue,” Abulencia explained.
He noted that the law also mandates LGUs to only allow the operation of accredited slaughterhouses.
“There was one slaughterhouse somewhere in Manila, which was closed and the owner was penalized for its non-accreditation. Here in Region 1, for humanitarian reason, we are coordinating with the LGUs and helping them to gain accreditation of their slaughterhouses,” Abulencia said.
NMIS-1 also urged the public to be vigilant and only support accredited slaughterhouses.
