Protect the welfare of animals during pithing operations
Overview
This standard is about the skills and knowledge needed for you to protect stunned animals during pithing operations in food manufacture and/or supply operations. Operating and understanding pithing operations is important to maintaining the safe, hygienic production of meat or poultry, including the maintenance of animal welfare. It is also important to maintaining supply to the meat or poultry production process. You will need to be able to prepare work area, tools and equipment to protect the welfare of animals during pithing operations. You also need to be able to carry out pithing operations and protect animal welfare, including ovine/caprine and porcine species. This standard is for you if you work in food manufacture and/or supply operations and are involved in carrying out pithing operations and protecting the welfare of animals.
Performance criteria
You must be able to:
Prepare pithing operations
prepare to carry out pithing operations in accordance with
organisational standards
wear and use personal protective equipment in accordance with
regulatory standards and organisational requirements
check the condition of pithing rods
maintain pithing rods ready for use
check the availability and condition of any restraint equipment
used
check the availability and operation of back-up stunning/killing
equipment
check that pithing area and personnel are available and ready for
receiving livestock
refer problems outside the limits of your responsibility to the
relevant people
Control pithing operations
assess the effectiveness of stunning and take action where
stunning has been ineffective
check restraint and position of livestock is correct for pithing
select and use rods to pith livestock
operate in ways which minimise avoidable pain, suffering and
distress
insert pithing rod and ensure the destruction of the brain function
take action to deal with livestock that are not pithed effectively
address problems within the limits of your responsibility
Knowledge and Understanding
You need to know and understand:
why it is important to follow organisational standard operating
procedures and animal welfare regulations during pithing
operations
the behavioural characteristics of livestock in pithing operations
why it is important to minimise avoidable pain, suffering and
distress
the expected times to death following effective pithing
how to recognise the signs of effective pithing, ineffective pithing,
consciousness
- why the brain should be destroyed to ensure that
unconsciousness is irreversible and what should be done if this
does not happen
- how to carry out a back-up stunning or killing method and the
circumstances in which this would be necessary
- the importance of following the manufacturer's instructions for
using pithing rods and any restraint equipment used
why it is important to check the cleanliness of tools and equipment
own responsibilities under animal welfare regulations for the
pithing of livestock
how to access the organisational standard operating procedures
how to deal with operating problems within the limits of your
responsibility