Residents of Gwagwalada Area Council of FCT have complained about the unclean methods used to move meat from slaughterhouses to markets.
Those who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday expressed concern and major health concerns about the usage of wheelbarrows, motorcycles, and flimsy vehicles to transport meat.
Mrs Oyindamola Adegbenga, a public servant, criticized the abattoir's handling of meat and blasted the wheelbarrow method as unclean.
“I used to like meat, but after seeing the way they use wheelbarrows to transport meat and sometimes even carry the meat on their heads, I stopped buying from the meat stalls.
“I can only eat meat that I am sure about the way it was handled. Most times, we gather ourselves and buy a cow, kill it and share the meat. This way, I am comfortable eating such meat.
“I think whoever is in charge of abattoirs should educate the butchers on proper ways of meat handling,’’ she said.
Adegbenga urged the government to establish more effective methods of delivering meat to markets and other designated areas.
Despite not placing much focus on how meat is handled, Mr Darlington Eboh, an artisan, said individuals in charge should conduct themselves properly and professionally.
Eboh advised people in charge to research how meat is handled in wealthy nations and implement similar practices in Nigeria.
Mr Suleiman Mohammed, a butcher, claimed that if the government implemented better methods of transporting meat from abattoirs to markets, meat handlers would comply.
“For now, wheelbarrows, motorcycles and these old vehicles you see around are our means of transporting meat and we will continue to use them until there are alternatives,’’ he said.
Dr Sidiama Adamu, the principal veterinarian of the Gwagwalada Abattoir, responded to the submissions by stating that the FCT Administration was planning to deploy haulage vans to transport meat from abattoirs to markets.
He said that the FCT Administration had recently received a donation of refrigerated meat vans from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and that the latter intended to give even more.
