Animal Primary Conversion Procedure

Assess prohibited-substance risk before approval and market allocation

Before live animals or animal materials are approved for use, the procedure requires a documented assessment of potential prohibited substances for the relevant species, supplier, origin and supply route. Technical / Quality Management approves the assessment, which considers relevant legislation, supplier or farm information, animal origin and history, treatment information, surveillance information and available test results.

The assessment covers both the country of operation and each intended country of sale. It is reviewed before a new species, supplier, origin, supply route or intended market is approved and when relevant legal, treatment, surveillance or test information changes. Where a restriction affects a supplier, supply route or market, that restriction is carried into the applicable supplier approval record, specification or acceptance requirement before product is allocated to the affected market.

If the legal status or potential presence of a substance cannot be established, the affected supplier, supply route, animals or animal materials remain unapproved until the missing information is obtained and Technical / Quality Management has approved the completed assessment.

Carry the assessment into supplier, receipt and testing controls

The completed prohibited-substance assessment is used when supplier approval, supplier monitoring, raw-material acceptance and testing requirements are established. Acceptance requirements include any evidence, restriction or testing identified by the assessment, while testing requirements define whether testing is needed and, where required, the substance or residue, point of testing and frequency.

Goods-In or animal-receipt personnel check each delivery against the approved acceptance requirements and report missing evidence, failed checks or other deviations. Where supplier evidence, acceptance checks or test results do not demonstrate compliance, the affected animals or animal materials are not accepted, processed or released and are controlled through the Non-Conforming Product Control Procedure.

Control veterinary treatment and animal eligibility

Where veterinary medicines, pharmaceuticals or pesticides are held or administered on site, the procedure defines responsibilities for competent and legally permitted treatment, control of site-held substances, and approval and monitoring of external providers. Treatment is linked to the affected animal or identifiable animal group through records that identify the substance, date of administration, any applicable withdrawal or withholding period, the person or provider involved, and the point from which the animal becomes eligible for slaughter or conversion.

Where treatment status, completion of a required withdrawal or withholding period, or eligibility for slaughter cannot be demonstrated, the affected animal or group is placed on hold and does not proceed to slaughter or conversion. If slaughter has already taken place, identifiable carcasses and edible parts associated with that animal or group are controlled as non-conforming product.

Where no veterinary medicines, pharmaceuticals or pesticides are held or administered on site, the procedure instead relies on supplier approval, receipt acceptance and testing where required by the approved prohibited-substance assessment; it does not require a separate record solely to confirm non-use.

Require legally valid fitness inspection before and after slaughter

Where live animals are received, inspection takes place before and after slaughter. The procedure permits these inspections to be carried out by an official veterinarian, competent-authority representative, suitably competent and legally authorised site personnel, or a combination of those persons.

Technical / Quality Management confirms that inspectors are competent, legally permitted to perform the activity and authorised to make the applicable fitness decision. Each live animal or identified animal group is inspected at lairage before slaughter or conversion, and each carcass and its associated edible parts is inspected post-mortem. Completion and outcome are demonstrated by legally valid evidence recognised for the operation.

If an inspection has not been completed, cannot be demonstrated, or concludes that an animal, carcass, organ or other edible part is unfit, the affected material does not enter or continue within the human food supply chain. Where inspection identifies an increased cross-contamination risk, Technical / Quality Management determines the additional segregation or handling required before slaughter or processing continues.

Maintain traceability from the animal to every edible output

Traceability links each received animal or animal group to every carcass part, organ, tissue, blood or other edible output intended for the human food supply chain. The traceability system, established through the Traceability Procedure, provides the identifiers and recording points needed to preserve that link through slaughter, conversion, processing, storage and dispatch.

The identifier may relate to an individual animal, flock, lot, catch, delivery group, slaughter batch or another legally valid unit approved by Technical / Quality Management. If the required traceability link is lost or cannot be demonstrated, the animals, carcasses or edible parts whose identity cannot be confirmed are placed on hold while records and identification are reviewed. Where affected product may have left site control, escalation follows the Incident Management, Product Withdrawal & Recall Procedure.

Define and approve post-slaughter time and temperature requirements

Technical / Quality Management defines and approves post-slaughter time and temperature requirements before routine production begins. Approved requirements are included in the HACCP or food safety plan, product and process specifications, and controlled operating instructions. Production and Operations personnel may provide practical process information, but they cannot independently set, change or waive the approved requirements.

The procedure requires time and temperature requirements for every post-slaughter process operated by the site, including applicable cooling, processing, storage and distribution stages. Time requirements include the maximum time permitted to reach the specified product temperature where cooling or freezing is required, and the approved controls extend across all chilled and frozen edible carcass parts handled by the site.

Production, Operations, Warehouse and Dispatch personnel follow the approved instructions, complete the specified checks and report deviations. Where a required time or temperature condition has not been achieved or cannot be demonstrated, the affected edible parts are placed on hold and assessed by Technical / Quality Management, with hold, release and disposition managed through the Non-Conforming Product Control Procedure.

Allocate authority across technical, operational and inspection roles

The procedure separates governance, technical approval and operational execution. Senior Management provides the resources and competent personnel needed for animal primary conversion controls. Technical / Quality Management owns prohibited-substance assessment, legal acceptability of treatment and inspection arrangements, traceability method and identification points, and approval of post-slaughter time and temperature requirements.

Production / Operations Management implements approved process requirements and maintains traceability links through operations. Goods-In and animal-receipt personnel apply receipt checks and identification controls; warehouse and dispatch personnel maintain traceability and prevent movement or release of material on hold; suitably competent inspectors make and communicate fitness decisions within their legal authority. Personnel responsible for customer and market requirements must also ensure that product is not allocated to an intended country of sale until Technical / Quality Management has confirmed that the prohibited-substance assessment covers that market.

Connect animal primary conversion with the wider FSQMS

The procedure works with the Suite’s supplier and raw-material approval, specifications, product inspection and laboratory analysis, traceability, control of operations, calibration, non-conforming product, corrective action and incident-management controls. Those interfaces keep the responsibilities defined in this procedure distinct from the detailed methods governed elsewhere in the FSQMS.