A pig plant slaughters, processes, and prepares pigs for sale, and may also process other animals. Pigs are led through a route to reduce stress before being stunned and slaughtered. The carcass is then cleaned, cut, and prepared for sale.
A pig plant is a facility where pigs are slaughtered, cleaned, processed and prepared for sale. A hog plant can also be used for processing meats from other animals such as cattle, lambs, and bison, as well as pigs. In general, a meat plant processes one type of animal in one day and then prepares the facility to process another type of animal in another day.
Pigs are processed in a pork plant typically when they are between four and seven months of age. In many facilities, animals are led into the slaughterhouse through a tortuous route designed to reduce the level of stress on the animals by limiting their visibility to only the animal in front. Reducing the stress level of animals helps make the slaughter process easier, is considered more humane, and also improves the taste and texture of the meat.
The next stage in a pig plant involves stunning the pig, which renders the animal unconscious and unable to feel pain. Different meat plants use different methods of stunning with some of the most common stunning methods including the use of carbon dioxide or power tools to render an animal unconscious. Once unconscious, the pig is lifted by its hind legs to allow for an artery in its neck to be severed. The blood in the animal is then allowed to drain from the carcass, a process which normally takes about five minutes. Meat plants that treat animals under kosher Jewish or Muslim guidelines do not allow stunning the animal before slaughter.
The next steps in the process on a pig farm involve cleaning, cutting, preparing and storing the carcasses for eventual sale. In many plants, the first step is the removal of any hairs on the carcass. Once this is completed, the pigs are eviscerated, which means that the internal organs – such as hearts, lungs and intestines – along with the head are removed and the carcass is split in half. Organs considered edible, often referred to as offal, are separated from inedible organs.
The carcasses are then often cut into separate sections. The pork sides and bellies are often used to make bacon or ribs, the shank or rump of the pig is used to make ham, the loin is used for various cuts of pork, while the shoulder is often used for roasts. The meat can then be stored in refrigerated units in the pork facility until it is released for sale or for further processing.
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