Tool for the Assessment and Prediction of Animal By-product Resources

Abstract

This study was motivated by the need to make better use of animal protein from animal by-products (ABPs). The goal was to develop a tool to monitor and assess the production and use of ABP resources in cooperation with both companies and state authorities. Data was gathered from a wide variety of sources, and was used to determine the number of animals (by species) and yield of various types of ABPs categorized into risk categories produced per animal during meat processing. The reliability of this data was tested using both direct observation and by comparing with additional data sources. Only the number of animals of each species processed are required to estimate the quantities of the various types of ABPs produced within each risk category. During evaluation of the calculation-tool it was estimated that 22,741 tons of ABPs are generated in the slaughterhouses certified within Estonia annually. The quantity of ABPs delivered by meat processing plants for reprocessing as 1st category waste was 4888 tons in 2013. This total exceeds our estimate by ~3.5 times. We thus conclude that ABPs from lower risk categories are being sent for reprocessing as the highest risk-category of waste. This implies that the meat industry is making insufficient use ABPs as raw material. A strategy for developing a fully functional and efficient system to manage ABP recourses within slaughterhouses is discussed, and our tool, together with these ideas could be used to develop and implement such a plan within processing companies in other countries.