Day 217 - 09 02 96 - Page 29
DAY 217
MRS. HOVI, Examined:
1 made to install a batch sterilizer where the aprons and the
2 metal gloves used by the cutting hall men could be disposed
3 of during the breaks as well.
4
5 Q. Yes.
6 A. This obvious lack of sterilizers in the boning hall had
7 been, obviously, brought about by the change where they had
8 expanded the boning area or the cutting area in the cutting
9 hall. As far as I could understand, everybody, including
10 Mr. Bone, they were all concerned about the lack of
11 sterilizing facilities.
12
13 Q. Yes.
14 A. Paragraph 37, the same page, this is about the mince
15 making during the night shift in the cutting room. My
16 concern of the issue is not the fact that there was a --
17 that minced meat was produced in the premises. That is
18 totally acceptable. My concern was arisen when I realised
19 that night after night the mince machine was not cleaned
20 and was left with meat in it actually, with the remnants of
21 meat in it during the day, which is of great concern to
22 anybody who works with hygiene, because the bacteria are
23 allowed to grow during the day and the cleaning then done
24 before the next shift starts is bound to be inadequate.
25 That is where my concern arose about the minced meat being
26 prepared.
27
28 Q. What are you saying, that mince was left in it overnight or
29 -----
30 A. Mince, remnants of mince. It had been used to make
31 mince it and it had not been cleaned even superficially.
32 Also here I should perhaps ------
33
34 Q. Then it was cleaned in the morning, was it?
35 A. No, I never saw anybody clean it unless I prompted them
36 to do that. By the time I usually noticed that it had not
37 been cleaned the night before, the cutting shift, the day
38 shift, had already started in the cutting room and I could
39 not allow water being splashed and steam being created in
40 the room at that stage so the cleaning had to be left until
41 evening.
42
43 MR. MORRIS: Is that what you are saying, that the cleaning
44 would have taken place before they started the mince shift,
45 when it should have taken place after they had finished?
46 A. Yes.
47
48 Q. Right. Then I would like to go on to paragraph No. 40,
49 page 21. This is all about the line speed. Mr. Bone,
50 quite rightly, calculates for the average skill per hour
51 and it seems quite acceptable. What the Ministry of
52 Agriculture ------
53
54 MR. MORRIS: Sorry, what happens?
55 A. I am on page 22 now, the same paragraph still. The
56 paragraph starts on page 21. The Ministry of Agriculture
57 had suggested in their report where they suspected that the
58 through put was intentionally cut down during their
59 inspection, they had suggested that a line speed of 35 an
60 hour, as was the case during their visit, would be
29
