Present controls on these issues are contained in:
The main amendments relate to the slaughtering of ostriches. These are covered by the EC Farmed Game Directive which requires that they should be slaughtered in accordance with the rules laid down in the Poultry Meat Directive. This provision has been incorporated into GB law through the poultry meat Regulations. These Regulations permit the slaughter of ostriches in poultry slaughterhouses only. However, for practical reasons such as the size of the birds and differences in the way they are processes, existing licensed poultry slaughterhouses do not have the facilities to process ostriches. It is therefore proposed to permit the slaughter of ostriches in red meat slaughterhouses, subject to certain additional requirements to ensure compliance with the requirements for poultry which are relevant to ostriches.
It is proposed that for the sake of simplicity to set out the requirements for ostriches and other farmed game birds in a separate set of regulations and to consolidate the existing poultry meat regulations into a text covering poultry and rabbit meat only. The proposed new regulations would govern the production of ostriches, whether produced in a red meat, poultry meat or dedicated slaughterhouse.
The consultation letter provides further details of these changes and of the other amendments being proposed. Comments are requested by the 28 April 1997.