Despite all the major meat plants in NI already having CCTV in place, Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has opened a public consultation in NI that will make it compulsory for all slaughterhouses to install the technology.Justifying the proposed legislative change, the Alliance MLA highlighted how animal welfare was one of his “top priorities”, adding that the new law would bring NI into parity with the rest of the UK, thereby underlining his commitment to “closing legislative deficits”.
Despite all the major meat plants in NI already having CCTV in place, Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has opened a public consultation in NI that will make it compulsory for all slaughterhouses to install the technology.
Justifying the proposed legislative change, the Alliance MLA highlighted how animal welfare was one of his “top priorities”, adding that the new law would bring NI into parity with the rest of the UK, thereby underlining his commitment to “closing legislative deficits”.
CCTV in slaughterhouses has been a legal requirement in England since 2018. Scotland followed in July 2021, with Wales putting in place relevant legislation from June 2024.
There is no legal requirement for CCTV in abattoirs in the Republic of Ireland or throughout the EU.
While NI has been an outlier in terms of UK law, all the major meat companies in NI supplying British retailers, have had to have CCTV in place for the last 10 years and more.
Animal welfare legislation
The arguments made for CCTV include that it can be used to prove meat businesses are compliant with animal welfare legislation, is important for staff training purposes and can help improve processes within an abattoir.
Once in place, the legislation will require slaughterhouses to have CCTV coverage in all areas where live animals are present, to include where they are unloaded, kept, handled, stunned and killed. The new law will also allow government officials to have unfettered access to CCTV footage and make it compulsory for meat businesses to retain a recording for 90 days.
There are currently 20 licensed slaughterhouses in NI, covering beef, sheep, pigs, poultry and deer processing. According to a regulatory impact assessment published by DAERA, 15 of these businesses already have full CCTV coverage in their business. One company has partial coverage, leaving four slaughterhouses with no CCTV in the desired areas.
Cost
Based on data from DEFRA in England, DAERA estimate it will take £45,200 for these four businesses with no CCTV, to be compliant with new rules. When adding in the abattoir that is partially compliant, it is a total one-off cost of £47,400. For those businesses already with CCTV in place, there is an ongoing annual cost to comply, estimated at £2,000 per site.
Responses to the consultation on CCTV in slaughterhouses should be submitted by noon on Wednesday 21 May 2025.
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