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The Slaughter Hall

All Cattle are processed through 20 various procedures of the Slaughter Hall (Abattoir) to become a side of beef.

In the Abattoir the cattle are slaughtered, hides stripped and carcass split in half for spinal cord removal. Each carcass and its offal is independently examined by an inspector from the Meat Hygiene Service to deem it 'Fit for Human Consumption'. Any carcass 'Not Fit' is removed from the line and disposed of as fallen stock.

Weights and Grades

The dressed carcass is then trimmed to the New EC Specification, weighed and graded by an independent Meat & Livestock Commission (MLC) Inspector. Grades are decided from the below matrix used by the MLC. This grades the carcass on confirmation (shape) and fat covering:

MLC Classificiation Matrix

  • Conformation is classed on the scale E to -P; E being excellent and P is poor.

  • Fat covering is graded on a scale 1 to 5H; 1 is ultra lean and 5L/H is excessively fatty.

  • Cattle prices are based on R4L grades and specific weights.

The below graph identifies industry demand for carcass weights:

Weights of Carcass

The MLC Inspector enters the details of the grade into the computer system for the carcass.  The system then allocates the carcass by grade to a customer and prints out a carcass tag with that information.

The side of beef is hung in the chiller to customer specification and quartered for despatch or transferred into the Cutting Room for further processing.