Warnings from director of veterinary hospital
Unregulated slaughters in Dhi Qar pose public health risks
DHI QAR – Only a quarter of animal slaughters in Dhi Qar are conducted in regulated facilities, with the rest occurring under conditions that fail to meet health and safety standard, according to Mohammed Aziz Jasim, the director of the Veterinary Hospital, who emphasized the substantial public health risks posed by such practices. Jasim revealed that while the governorate operates five slaughterhouses, only one meets the required regulations.
He highlighted the urgent need for modern facilities, indicating that the city alone requires 22 such establishments to adequately manage slaughtering processes and ensure public health safety. “The number of operational slaughterhouses in Dhi Qar is five, most of which do not meet health and environmental standards,” Jasim told Al-Mada newspaper. He described various sites, including a makeshift slaughterhouse in Souq Al-Shuyukh and a low-cost facility in Al-Fajr, which fail to meet proper standards.
Jasim also addressed the grim conditions of the Nasiriyah slaughterhouse, currently closed by judicial order yet still in use due to the absence of alternatives. This facility suffers from significant infrastructure issues, such as a blocked sewage system requiring intervention to prevent operational disruptions.
The risk of spreading diseases like hemorrhagic fever is exacerbated by these conditions, Jasim warned, stressing the necessity for controlled, regulated slaughtering to prevent such outbreaks. He noted that random slaughtering practices contribute significantly to public health threats, including the transmission of diseases from livestock to humans.
As of May, 40 cases of hemorrhagic fever have been reported across various governorates including Baghdad, Nineveh, Dhi Qar, and Babil, with five fatalities recorded. Jasim emphasized the critical need for immediate action to address these public health risks, proposing the development of low-cost, compliant slaughterhouses as a temporary solution while the region works toward establishing more suitable facilities.