Home slaughter of livestock: A guide to the law in England and Wales - animal by-products regulations

Animal by-products regulations

If you carry out home slaughter, any parts of the carcase you do not eat are considered animal by-products (ABPs) under the ABP Regulation and must be handled accordingly to protect public and animal health.

ABPs are whole bodies, parts of an animal, products of animal origin or other products from an animal which are not intended for human consumption.

Material becomes ABP when it is either unfit for human consumption or when a decision is taken that the material is not intended to be eaten, even if it is fit for consumption. Once classified as an ABP, it cannot later be used as food.

The ABP Regulation categorises ABP into 3 risk-based categories. ^{(footnote 1)}  Home slaughter waste consisting of hides and skins, hooves, feathers, wool, horns and hair will fall into category 3 if those materials do not show signs of disease communicable through that material to humans or animals. ^{(footnote 2)} Other home slaughter waste fall into category 1 for example, if it includes specified risk material (SRM), or category 2. These categories determine how the material must be handled and disposed of. Please refer to the ABP Regulation for further information on disposing of ABPs.

All ABPs must be disposed of in line with the ABP Regulation. This usually means sending the waste material to approved or registered facilities for rendering or incineration. GOV.UK provides a list of approved ABP operating plants. The Animal and Plant Health Authority (APHA) or your Local Authority (LA) (or, in some cases, Environmental Health department) can advise on disposal options. 

The responsibility for enforcing ABP requirements on farms lies with the relevant LA for the area where the farm is located. Authorised officers have powers to enter and inspect premises and to issue notices where necessary. These may include, for example:

• Requiring the disposal of ABPs and derived products.
• Requiring the cleansing and disinfection of premises, including specifying the method where applicable; or
• Prohibiting the movement of ABPs and derived products onto or off the premises.

GOV.UK provides further guidance on APB categories, site approval, hygiene and disposal for England. GOV.WALES provides further APBs guidance for Wales.