Assessment of Sanitary Status and Practices in the Selected Abattoirs and Slaughter Houses in Anambra State, Nigeria

The sanitary conditions and workers practices within abattoirs and slaughterhouses are critical factors affecting public health and the quality of meat available in the markets. The problem is from lack of quality environmental health practice among abattoir workers. This study aims to assess the sanitary status and practices in selected abattoirs and slaughterhouses in Anambra State, Nigeria. The study adopted a cross-sectional study to determine the studied other objectives which include assessment of internal facilities, waste management practices, and overallsanitary conditions within these establishments. The sampling technique for the study was stratified random technique. Structured self-administered questionnaire was administered to 140 participants while observational checklist was used to collect data on sanitary conditions within the premises. The collected data was entered into computer software called Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 20.0) and was analyzed using descriptive statistical analysis. The results were displayed in frequency tables while the relationship between variables were determined with chi square statistical test and the findings revealed that majority (82.9%) of respondents were male; 46.4% of the respondents were butchers, this implies that they were in constant contact with meat. Unfortunately, majority (87.1%) did not have any medical certificate of fitness, and workers were either wearing inadequate PPEs or no PPE. Also, findings showed that no hand washing station (0%) was availability for the workers, which discouraged their hand washing practices. A personal observation of the abattoir facilities indicated that Lairage was without roof and was flooded, slaughtering process was done on bare floor, without evisceration or bleeding area (0%). The hypothesis test conducted at P-value >0.05 indicated that there was a significant relationship between the level of education of abattoir worker and how often they wash their hands, in favor of the alternate hypothesis. Similarly, there was a significant relationship between the years of experience of abattoir worker and how often they wash their hands. In conclusion, the findings highlight critical deficiencies in sanitary practices, posing risks to both workers and consumers. Therefore, there is need to ensure food safety practices among abattoir and slaughter workers for the purpose of sustainable meat production.