The Annual Report on the Health of the Parish of St. Mary Abbotts, Kensington, during the year 1874

by T. Orme Dudfield

LICENSED SLAUGHTER HOUSES.

The licensed slaughter-houses—49 in number—viz., 28 in the North Sanitary District, and 21 in the South, have been duly inspected. In my last annual report I gave some account of the Slaughter Houses (Metropolis) Act, 1874, under which the Metropolitan Board of Works, as the “local authority,” were empowered to frame bye-laws, for regulating the conduct of the business of a slaughterer of cattle, and the structure of the premises in which the business is carried on. As it was impossible to get the bye-laws framed and confirmed by the Local Government Board previous to the annual licensing day in the month of October (as a matter of fact they were not confirmed until the 27th of May in the present year), your Vestry, on the recommendation of the Sanitary Committee, unanimously resolved that certain conditions were essential in order to fit a slaughter-house for the business, and decided to oppose the renewal of licenses in every case that did not come up to the standard. The conditions were as follows:

1. A slaughter-house should have an independent entrance, so that the cattle may not have to pass through the house or shop; and it should be at a reasonable distance from other buildings, particularly inhabited houses.

2. It should be open to the roof; or, at least, should have no inhabited rooms over it.

3. It should be well ventilated and properly lighted, so that the slaughtering may be done, as it always should be, with closed doors.

4. It should have walls and floor of smooth and impervious materials—the flooring being laid on concrete.

5. It should be well drained, with stone ware pipes, and the drains should be permanently trapped.

6. It should have attached to it ample and separate lairage, constructed with a due regard to sanitary and other requirements.

7. It should be effectually separated from any lair, stable, dung-pit, w.c., &c., so that the meat may not be exposed to any offensive effluvia.

8. It should be of adequate size, and should not be used for any other purpose than that for which it is licensed, and particularly it should not be used as a stable, a lair, or a cow-shed.