Slaughter house by-product utilization for sustainable meat industry- a review

Meat sector in India plays an important role in providing livelihood to rural people in the country. Animal slaughtering not only provides meat but also valuable by-products to the mankind. By slaughtering and processing of meat animal, only one third is meat while the rest comprise of by-products and waste, which need to be adequately processed and utilized. Traditional markets for edible meat by-products have gradually been disappearing because of concerns about health and economic returns. In response to these problems, meat processors have directed marketing and research efforts toward inedible applications. Efficient utilization of by-products has direct impact on the economy and environmental pollution of the country, the former being an asset and the latter is a responsibility. The yield of animal by-products ranges between 50-60% of the live weight. According to various statistics 107 million livestock and more than 650 million poultry birds were slaughtered annually in India leading to production of 6.3 million tonnes meat. It leaves huge loads of by-products. The load is further increased by dead and fallen animals. The value of unprocessed by-products from buffalo and sheep in India was reported to be quite high. If these by-products are processed then the returns will be almost equal to the value of the meat derived from an animal. Therefore, the potential and scope of by-product utilization is really great which will result in industrial development, employment generation, environmental management and better returns to the farmers. Non-utilization of animal by-products in a proper way may create major aesthetic and catastrophic health problems. Value addition of animal by-products has two benefits. Firstly, the meat industry gets additional revenue by processing them to industrial, household, and cosmetic products; livestock feed additives; pet foods; pharmaceutical and medical supplies etc that otherwise would have been unrealized. Secondly, the costs of disposing of these secondary items are avoided. Utilization of these byproducts as fertilizer contributes a lot in organic farming and could reduce our dependence on synthetic fertilizers. Animal byproducts and wastes are a good source of renewable energy as well its production is economically feasible.