THE Hauraki Plains Gazette With which is incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE. Motta: Public Service. MONDAY, WEDNESDAY, & FRIDAY. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23, 1929. THE COUNTY ABATTOIR.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXX, Issue 5378, 23 January 1929, Page 2

THE Hauraki Plains Gazette With which is incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE. Motta: Public Service. MONDAY, WEDNESDAY, & FRIDAY. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23, 1929. THE COUNTY ABATTOIR.

The conditions and methods employed at the county abattoir at Mackay town invite severe criticism and questioning. Here we have serving an important and populous district an abattoir which was. abo'ut the; fourth built in New Zealand, and whch apparently has. remained in the same state of'blissful disregard of proper sanitary and hygienic precautions commensurate with the practices in vogue at the; time of its. erection. The building itself, satisfies the health authorities, but from the print of view of the public, who after all are those most concerned, the methods of handling the bodies after killing call for condemnation in the strongest terms. They are hung unprotected in a shed, whejre flies, attracted in the first place by the offal in an adjoining shack, settle in swarms bn the carcases. Government regulations do not permit the bodies to be removed within, twelve hours, with a result, in this ease, t'hat the blowfly and his smaller companions, have more than ample time to db their deadly disease-spreading work. And in using the adjective “deadly,” we use it in the true and full meaning of the word. Bad enough even in winter, disease-ladehed, fly-contamin-ated meat in summer is a subject that appals one by its seriousness. During, the last few weeks local butchers have found on many occasions maggots already at work in the meat before; they can get it into their own UP-to-da.te, fly-proof cooling chambers. The public do not suffer to the extent that the butchers do, for in the interests of his customers and his own good name the butcher throws aside the diseased meat, and suffers, thereby, financially. There is. no reason whatsoever why this lamentable; state of affairs should continue. Proper precautions at the abattoir would ensure wholesbmeness. All that is necessary is a fly-proof, chamber where the; carcases could hang in the interval between killing and the elapsing of the twelve-hour period: insisted upon. by law. Paeroa. citizens have much to be thankful for in that they have such a public-spirited borough coun-, cil of soundly 'progressive thought, if the property wqre taken over by them no doubt the unsatisfactory antiquated buildings at present masr querading under the name of abattoir would be demolished and others more in keeping with advancing Paeroa would be erected. Entirely reconstructed, somewhat enlarged, and reorganised under the Borough Council, with the end in view of thereby dtapling with the future needs, would be in keeping with the policy off a longsighted counc.il. By attracting and satisfying other than the at present naturally not vejry large number of local requirements, they would no doubt be able to qonduct the place on a paying commercial basis ; making it, too, a public undertaking in keeping with New Zealauii’s recognised high standard in such affairs — a standard to be proud of, instead of an out-of-date, unsatisfactory abattoir that is a veritable disgrace and insult to the community.