Logistics chain of animal transport and abattoir operations

Transport and handling of slaughter animals are associated with a series of stressful events for animals, compromising welfare and meat quality. This necessitates the development of effective logistics systems, taking into consideration, road and traffic conditions, climate, transport time and distance, and queuing at delivery. The objective of the current work was to describe the logistics chain of animal transport and abattoir operations in order to demonstrate potential effects of operations planning and route optimisation on animal welfare, meat quality and the environment. The operation considered involves loading, transporting and unloading animals and the slaughter chain from lairage box to cooling room for cattle carcasses. Data collection was carried out through truck-driver interviews; activity registration on routes and at delivery, and slaughter chain activity registration. Uneven distribution of delivery arrivals affected handling at the delivery gate. Queues before delivery and vehicle washing created problems, as reported by the drivers. Time and distance of transport could be reduced through route optimisation. The analysis of collection routes indicated potential for savings of more than 20% in time, for individual routes.