Abattoir waste use in livestock diets: Uganda’s current situation

ISSN: 2224-0616 Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 10(1): 129-134, June 2020 Available online at https://ijarit.webs.com DOI: https://doi.org/10.3329/ijarit.v10i1.48105 https://www.banglajol.info/index.php/IJARIT Abattoir waste use in livestock diets: Uganda’s current situation R. Mwesigwa1&2*, P.K. Migwi1, A.M. King’ori1 and P.A. Onjoro1 Received 30 April 2020, Revised 17 June 2020, Accepted 20 June 2020, Published online 30 June 2020 ABSTRACT In this study, we investigated the various ways slaughter wastes are utilized, problems encountered in order to give insights in future prospects of abattoir wastes as livestock feeds. A total of 100 abattoir workers were interviewed through semi-structured questionnaires covering Kampala, Wakiso and Mukono districts in Uganda. Results revealed that majority of abattoir work force were middle-aged adults between 30-45 years contributing 37% of total workers. There was a significant association between abattoir workers responses in relation to the proportion of livestock slaughtered (Chi square 147.55; df =2; p<0.0001) in the abattoirs. With reference to cattle, 1.06 and 1.01 more sheep and goats were slaughtered respectively in the dry season in comparison to the wet season. Blood was mostly disposed as animal feed ingredient (blood meal) by 40% of the respondents while rumen contents were mostly sold as manure by 59% of the respondents. Only 16% of the respondents processed rumen contents for livestock feeding. 92.3% of bones were sold for dog feeding while 7.7% of bones were processed for livestock feed ingredients. Polythene bags were reported the biggest contaminants found in slaughter wastes. Stench from slaughter wastes contents was the biggest problem encountered with handling of waste products by (62%) of the respondents. The handling of abattoir wastes was still rudimental at most abattoirs as envisaged by lack of proper handling facilities at the abattoirs. There is need for regular enforcements to ensure proper abattoir waste disposal mechanisms for enhanced livestock use. Keywords: Regulation Awareness, Livestock Slaughtered, Slaughter Waste Contaminants. 1 Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Animal Sciences, Egerton University, P.O Box 536 Egerton 20115, Kenya. National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), Rwebitaba Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute, P.O BOX 96, Fort Portal, Uganda. 2 *Corresponding author’s email: (R. Mwesigwa) Cite this article as: Mwesigwa, R., Migwi, P.K., King’ori, A.M. and Onjoro, P.A. 2020. Abattoir waste use in livestock diets: Uganda’s current situation. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 10(1): 129-134. https://doi.org/10.3329/ijarit.v10i1.48105 Introduction Abattoirs are designated licensed places for hygienic meat processing (Alonge, 2005). As a consequence of abattoir operations, several inedible byproducts that are unfit for direct human consumption both of organic and inorganic nature are generated (Zhang et al., 2017). These byproducts are potential animal feed ingredients if subjected to precautious further processing (Mwesigwa et al., 2020a). However, in most abattoir operations especially in developing countries the major aim is to maximize edible meat products for human consumption leaving the byproducts to the detriment of land degradation, environmental pollution and biodiversity devastation (Ojekunle and Lateef, 2017). Several measures have been undertaken by a number of regulatory bodies to ensure that abattoir byproducts are disposed in manner that adheres to environmental safety and health standards. In Uganda, these enforcements are mainly done by the local government veterinary officers (DVOs), public health officers (PHOs) and the national environmental management authority (NEMA). Despite the intergovernmental agency interventions to ensure abattoirs products remains safe to both consumers and the environment, there are concerns of laxity in implementation of these measures by both enforcement agencies and abattoir operators that has put consumers and environment at risk (Kyayesimira et al., 2019). This has not only left most abattoirs to operate at questionable healthy standards but also put livelihoods that depend on abattoir operations at great risk. In this study, we investigated abattoir wastes as source of livestock feeds, different ways the wastes are being utilized and challenges faced in order to give insight of the current state and future prospects of waste management in the central region of Uganda. International Journal of Agricultural Research Innovation & Technology An open access article under Mwesigwa et al. (2020) Abattoir waste use in livestock diets: Uganda’s current situation Methodology Description of the study areas The study was carried out in the districts of Wakiso, Mukono and Kampala, which constitute part of central Uganda. Kampala, the capital city of Uganda is found 45 km north of the Equator at 0°19’6”N and 32°34’60”E (Fig. 1). Wakiso district is located 20 kilometers northwest of Kampala, at 00 24N, 32 29E coordinates, while Mukono district is located 27 km from Kampala at 00°20′N, 32°45′E. Fig. 1. Map showing the location of study area, source of the map (UBOS, 2018). Data collection Data was collected by means of interviews targeting abattoir operators/workers. The interviewees included a diverse category of people including veterinary doctors, health inspectors, abattoir chairpersons and people working in abattoirs. The sample size was determined according to formula by Yamane (1967). n= 𝑁/(1 + 𝑁 ∗ (𝑒)2 Where, n is the sample size; N is the population size and e, is the acceptable standard error; e=0.05. The sample size was calculated based on 95% confidence level. Considering a population of about 130 abattoir workers around the central districts in Uganda, a total of 100 participants were interviewed, 37 from Kampala, 37 from Wakiso and 26 from Mukono. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected using a structured questionnaire with both open and closed end questions. Qualitative data included, sex, marital, education status, type of animals slaughtered, abattoir waste utilization and potential constraints. On the other hand, quantitative data were family size, number and type of animals slaughter in wet and dry season. Data analysis Social demographic characteristics of the abattoir work force, whether farmers separated rumen contents from discarded carcasses and the various ways slaughter wastes were utilized were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Chi Square (χ2) was used to test association between abattoir workers responses in relation to the proportion of livestock slaughtered and abattoir worker’s awareness of the various regulations governing their operations. If any of the chi square cells was less than 5, then fisher exact test statistics would be Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 10(1): 129-134, June 2020 130 Mwesigwa et al. (2020) Abattoir waste use in livestock di (...truncated)