UNIT 1 NEED AND IMPORTANCE OF

BY-PRODUCTS PROCESSING
Structure
1.0 Objectives
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Slaughter Househieat Plant By-products
1.2.1 Classification of By-products
1.2.2 Commercial Classification
1.2.3 Meat Plant By-Products

1.3 Poultry By-products

1.3.1 By-products fiom Production Phase
1.3.2 Hatchery By-products
. 1.3.3 By-products of Poultry Processing Plant

1.4 Benefits from Utilization ofAnirnal By-products

1 .5 Status of By-product Industry
1.6 Let Us Sum Up
1.7 Key Words
1.8 Some Usehl Books
1.9 Answers to Check Your Progress

1.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this unit, you will be able to:
define the term 'animal by-product';
list the by-products obtained fiom slaughter houselmeat plant/poultry
processing plant;
explain the role of by-products utilization in improving ~ t u m
to the producers;
and
state how best the poultry by-products can be economically utilized.

1.1 INTRODUCTION
By-products of meat industry may be defined as everything from the abattoir or
butcher's shop that is not directly sold as food. Animals are generally slaughtered
for producing meat for human consumption. While slaughtering food animals in a
legally permitted place called slaughter house or abattoir, apart from meat a
number of offals or by-products also emanate. These are of both edible and
inedible in nature.
Introduction of Animal Basically, the term by-products and offals are used to denote every part and
By-products
particle of value, obtained from slaughter animal, which is not generally included in
the dressed carcass. From a cattle of 200 kg live weight, about 70 kg meat is
obtained while the rest of 130 kg is comprised of other body parts such as skin,
gastro-intestinal tract, bones, feet, head and organs like liver, heart, kidney and
spleen. All these parts are collectively referred as offals or by-products. Generally,
these parts fall off from a carcass during dressing.

Therefore, it is quite obvious that if these by-products are not utilized properly or
wasted would reduce the returns to the producers and cost of disposing of these
products will be increased. Various aspects of by-products utilization will be
discussed in this unit.

1.2 SLAUGHTER HOUSE/MEAT PLANT

BY-PRODUCTS
Animals are generally slaughtered for producing meat for human consumption.
Besides meat, a number of by-products are obtained from slaughtered animals.
l'hese include blood, hidelsk~qhooves and horns, head, guts comprising of stomach
(rurnen, reticulum, omasurn and abomasums in case of ruminants), intestines (both
large and small), intestinal contents and various glands of commercial importance.

These are being utilized by different industries to produce value added secondary
by-products. The semi digested and undigested foodstuffs left in the stomachs of
nuninants as well as the semi digested food left in the intestines is being used as
fertilizer as well as feed supplement after thorough sterilization and proper
processing. Vasious glands are being collected and processed by pharmaceutical
industries for isolation of their active principlcs for further incorporation into
phmaceuticd preparations.

On an average, the following percentages of salable meat and by-products are

obtained from slaughtered animals in India:

Table 1.1: Percentages of Salable Meat and By-products from

Slaughtered Animals

Animal Average Yield of Quantity of Remarks

Salable Meat By-product
(per cent) (per cent)

Cattle 28-33 67-72 Culled animals

Bu£Mo 27-30 70-73

Sheep 30-3 1 69-70 Culled

Goat 28-30 70-72 Culled

fig 52-55 45-48 Meat animals

I

PO* 55-60 40-45 Broilers

 2 . Classification of By-products Need and Importance of
By-products Processing
By-products arq classified into two categories, namely, edible and inedible. There
is no hard and fast debarkation line between these two categories as this
classification is influenced by the customs and economic conditions of countries.
The basic factor for classification is determined by the purchasing power, food
habit, religion, and customs of consumers. In developed countries, people having
high purchasing power consider blood, feet, head, lungs, windpipes, spleen,
intestines, trimmings, udder, fetuses and tripe as inedible by-products. But in some
of the developing countries or less developed countries almost all of these are
regarded as edible by-products by the consumers.

General classification of animal by-products is as follows:

Edible by-products: Edible by-products include the organs such as kidneys,

brain, liver, heart, tongue, ox tail, intestinal tract, gut and sweet bread (thymus)
which are usually but not always consumed as food items (edible).

Inedible by-products: Animals which die at the slaughter house prior to slaughter
or those animals or parts of animals which have failed to pass the meat inspection
fall under the category of inedible by-products.

E.g., Ears, lips, snout (a mouth part of pig carcass), teeth, fetus, gall bladder,
trimmings, fleshings, hooves, horns, hair, bristles, hide, skin, dew claws are
categorized as inedible.

On the border line between edible and inedible, a small group of organs may be
I considered either edible or inedible based on the soundness of the animals from
which they are derived or whether these are contaminated during the process of
slaughter and dressing or not. These organs include uterus, spleen, testicles, lungs
and blood.

Table 1.2 :Average Breakup of Per cent Yield of Different

Products from Food Animals

Cattle Lamb Pig

Carcass and other edible offals 62-64 62-64 75-80

Edible raw fat 3 -4 5-6 10-15

Blood 3 -4 3.5-4 3 -4

Inedible raw material 8-10 6-7 6- 8

Stomach and intestinal content 8 5.5 -

- -

Hidelskin (pelt and wool in lamb) 7 15 -

Introduction of Animal
By-products
I Live Animal
I
I
I
Slaughtered Manure
I
I i

Inedible
I
- Intestinal Content (e.g. fertilizer)

Pharmaceuticals (e.g. insulin)

I
Hide (e.g, leather)

Bone (e.g. bone meal, soup)

Edible
-

.--
Blood (e.g. blood meal, blood pudding)
- - -
I
Human Food

Chilled (e.g. Ox tail)

Further Processed

P
-
Heated (e.g. Tongue)

Chemically Treated (e.g. Tripe)

- Cured andlor sausage

-
Dried (e.g. Gelatine)

I 1 Frozen (e.g. Liver)

I
I Animal Feed Dried
I
' I ' I Sterilization by heat (e.g Tankage) 1
Dried (e.g. Blood)

Fig. 1.1: Main By-Products of Animal Wg

in
i
 Table 1.3 :Percentage Yield of Meat and Different By-products from Need and Importance of
By-products Processing
SlaughteredAnimals
Name of the ProductsBy-products Percentage Yield on Live Weight
Meat 35.OO
Bones (Green) 25.00
Hide 6.50
Blood 4.00
Horns and Hooves 0.60
Small Intestines 1.OO
Large Intestines 1.OO
Stomach 2.00
Rumen Ingesta 11.OO
Liver 1.20
Heart 0.35
Kidneys 0.20
Lungs 1.20
Brain 0.17
Spleen 0.15
Pancreas 0.07
Bile 0.06
Tongue 0.30
Hair, Teeth and other 1.50
Cutting losses etc. 8.70
Total 100.00

Some of the by-products like fat (edible and inedible), stomach and intestines,
blood, bones (edible and inedible), horns, hooves, hair and bristles, hides and
skins (tanning) and glands, condemned carcasses and offals must undergo some
kind of processing before final use.
1.2.2 Commercial Classification
For commercial purposes the by-products are broadly classified into two classes.
Primary by-products
Secondary by-products
Primary by-products are skin, horn, hooves, intestinal tracts, feathers, bristles,

3
feet etc., while secondary by-products are those which are prepared from primary
by-products e.g., leather from skin, brushes from bristles, soup from feet, neat's
foot oil from hooves, artifacts and combs from horn, casings from intestine etc.
Introduction of Animal Table 1.4: Some Important Animal By-products Obtained along with
By-products
their Secondary By-products
Primary By-product Secondary By-product
Hide/skin Leather, collagen sheets
Hidelskin trimmings Glue
Bones Bone meal, gelatin, bone protein
Bristles Brushes
Wool Warm garments, lanolin
Feathers Feather meal, decorative items, shuttle cock
Blood Blood meal, albumen, llaemoglobin, serum,
plasma, fibrin
Intestine Sausage casings, instrument strings, surgical
sutures, tennis racket guts
Horns Keratin, artifacts
Hooves Keratin, hoof meal, neat's foot oil
Intestinal contents Manure
Condemned offals, meat, Meat cum bone meal, offal meal. technical fat
carcasses
Pancreas Insulin
LW Heparin
Liver Liver extract
Edible offals Pet foods
(lung, liver, spleen etc.)
Stomach Trips
Calf stomach Rennin
Adrenal gland Adrenalin
Blain Cerebrocides, cholesterol
Poultry combs Hyaluronidase
Fat (tallow, lard) Soap industry, textile industry

1.2.3 Meat Plant By-products

In meat plant, the carcasses are fabricated into wholesale or retail cuts (meat
parts). They are de-boned (removal of bones) if necessary, weighed, then packed
in polythene bags, cardboard boxes and frozen. The meat (chilled or frozen) is
either exported to various countries or released in retail markets. In meat plants.
meat is also processed in making value added processed meat products like,
patties, sausage, kababs, ham, bacon, tandoori chicken etc..
Thus, meat plant by-products mainly comprise of meat scrap and trimmings, fat
trimmings and bones. The meat and fat trimmings collected from the meat plant
are mostly used in making pet foods while the bones are sold for preparation of
bone meal.
 Need and l m ~ o r t a n c eof
Check Your Progress 1 By-products Processing

1) What do you mean by by-products of meat industry?

2) Write the percentage of by-products in relation to live weight of buffalo, pig,

goat and poultry.

.................................................................................................................
3) List five primary animal by-products along with their secondary by-products.

.................................................................................................................
4) ClassifL theanimal by-products according to edibility of the product?

1.3 POULTRY BY-PRODUCTS

By-products of poultry industry mean everything fiom farm or processing plant
that may not be directly used as human food. 'These by-products may be also
edible or inedible. Edible by-products are mainly the tissue and bones from the
carcasses. Inedible by-products include hatchery waste (infertile eggs, dead
embryos, dead chicks, shell of hatched eggs), feathers, blood, eggs shell, offal, fat
and malure.
These by-products from poultry industry are classified into three categories, viz. :

i) By-products from production phase, which include litter and manure fiom
the f a ;
Introduction of Animal By-products emanating from the hatchery, which represent shells of hatched
xi
By-products
eggs, dead embryos and dead chicks;
iii) By-products of the poultry processing plant, which include blood, feathers,
offals (feet, head and intestinal tract), condemned birds etc..

1.3.1 By-products from Production Phase

Poultry litter and poultry manure fiom caged layers are used extensively in feeding
poultry and livestock. They are being incorporated in the feeds as a protein
supplement. Poultry manure can be used after sterilization and dehydration. The
dehydrated poultry manure contains about 27-29 per cent protein and can be
used upto 20 per cent and 25 per cent in the total diet of boilers and layers
respectively. Besides their use in livestock and poultry feed, the manure and litter
are also used as 'surface dressing' of agriculture fields. Poultry manure is not only
a good fertilizer but it also improves the physical texture of soil. One ton of deep
litter contains 29.48 kg nitrogen (equivalent to about 136.08 - 147. 42 kg of
ammonium sulphate), 20.4 1 kg of phosphorus (equivalent to about 113.40 -
136.08 kg ordinary super phosphate), 20.41 kg potash (equivalent to about
45.34 kg potassium), together with 6.80 kg magnesium, 6.8 kg sodium and
27.2 1 kg calcium. Besides, poultry manure contains small amount of trace elements,
especially boron, copper, iron, sulphur and zinc.

1.3.2 Hatchery By-products

Poultry hatchery by-products comprise a mixture of egg shells, infertile eggs,
unhatched eggs and dead or culled chicks. These can conveniently be converted
into meal of high protein quality.

The hatchery by-products are cooked, dried and ground with or without removal
of its fat. It contains about 18.10 per cent calcium and 4 13 mg/l00 g phosphorus.
The hatchery by-products meal can be added upto 3-5 per cent level in the layer
ration.

1.3.3 By-products of Poultry Processing Plant

Different species of poultry birds are reared for the table purpose. During dressing
of birds, different inedible by-products originate. These include feathers 6-7 per
cent, blood 3.5 per cent, heads 3.0 per cent, feet 3.9 per cent and intestines,
lungs, pancreas and spleen 8-9 per cent of the live weight. The natural proportion
of different by-products viz., feathers, blood and offals being 4: 1: 6. These by-
products have a diversified use and can be processed into suitable end products
for their better utilization. For example, feathers can be processed and converted
into bedding material, decorative items, sporting equipment, manure or fertilizer,
feather meal etc.. Poultry by-products can further be converted into poultry by-
products meal, hydrolyzed feather meal, mixed poultry by-products meal as well
as technical fat or poultry grease. First, these are cooked and most of the moisture
is removed in a dry rendering cooker to a level not exceeding 8 per cent. Then
the dehydrated material is pressed to remove excess fat. Finally the product is
ground to a fine powder. Commercial meal should contain not more than 1 6 per
cent ash and 4 per cent acid insoluble ash. This can be incorporated at 5-7 per
cent level in the ration, as a satisfactory substitute for meat meal or fish meal.
 Table 1.5: By-products from Broiler, Fowl and Turkey Need and Importance of
By-products Processing
% of l i n weight
Material Broiler Fowl Turkey

Offds 18.5 18.0 12.5

Blood 3.5 3.0 3.5
Feathers 7.0 7.0 7.0
Mixed by-products 28.00 28.00 28.00
(Total by-products obtained)
- - - - - -

1.4 BENEFITS FROM UTILIZATION OF ANIMAL

BY-PRODUCTS
By-products constitute about 50 per cent of the live weight of the animals hence
their proper utilization will improve returns to the producer. Further effective
utilization of by-products also lead to:
1) Improved environmental sanitation
By products like blood, meat trimmings, fleshings,condemned organs, unutilized
offals etc., attract flies, dogs, vultures and jackals which may cause public
nuisance and the danger of spreading diseases. The offalsdecompose rapidly,
leading not only to objectionable odor but also forming an ideal breeding
ground for meat spoiling organisms. Meat slaughtered and kept under this
unsanitary condition results not only of inferior quality but serves as a vehicle
of disease transmission. Proper and timely utilization of by-products and
installation of a by-product plant will raise the standard of slaughter house
hygiene and prevent the danger of environmental pollution.
2) Healthier and more productive livestock and improved soil fertility
The use of bones is an excellent example of the role played by waste animal
products in the improvement of livestock.

a) Bone-meal, by the addition of salt and trace-elements, such as Cu, I,

Co, Fe can serve as a complete mineral supplement.

b) Blood-meal provides more than 80 per cent protein and is a valuable

supplement to carbohydrate feed.

c) Meat and bone meal is not only a source of extremely valuable protein
but also supplies P, Ca as well as Vit. B,, essential for growth.

d) Use of bone meal is an excellent means of increasing soil fertility and

thereby ensures better crop production.

3) Development of secondary rural industries

Manufacture of secondary by-products of animal origin leads to the
establishment of secondary rural industries.
Introduction of Animal a) The hides and skin of high quality provides a sound base for tanning
By-products
industry.

b) Tallow and other greases lead to soap being manufactured locally.

c) Hair and bristles are suitable for brushes.

d) Inedible fat can be used in high calorific diet for broilers.

~

e) Animal casing utilization is helpful for establishing secondary firal

industries. .

4) Price structure of meat

Returns derived from' utilization of by-products can reduce the cost of
production of meat. It influences the price of meat and the livestock producer
in turn will get high returns from the animals. Blood, bone, fat, hide, skin,
intestine, stomach content etc., can fetch a very good remuneration for the
by-products processor.

5) Creation of new employment

The wastehl disposal of inedible offal needs little or no man-power, but the
conversion of this offal into by-products creates new employmellt and skills
not only at the place of production but in the secondary industries based on
such raw materials.

In nutshell, the advantages of offal.processing are:

Income from by-products and employmeilt generation.

Sanitary cleanliness of slaughter houses and its enviroiment.

Creating valuable source of stock feed.

Sustainable growth of livestock industry.

1.6 STATUS OF BY- PRODUCT INDUSTRY

Developed countries: h the developed countries the slaughter of animals is
centralized and the slaughter is carried out in well planned abattoirs. Subsequently,
the meat is supplied through retail outlets. As a result the availability of edible and
inedible offals is in substantial quantities making the by-products processing
economical.

Developing countries: In the developing countries 80 per cent of the population

lives in the rural places and prefer to eat meat from freshly slaughtered animals.
Almost 80 - 85 per cent of slaughter takes place in rural areas (Clandestine
Slaughter). Further, due to the low purchasing capability of the rural people the
slaughter rate is also very low. The availability of edible and inedible oflfals is very
low and their processing is not economically sustainable.

In India, now inodem abattoirs and meat processing plants are coming up and
they are having the facilities for by-products processing. Otherwise in r~u-a1
area a
person who is interested in by-products processing collect skin and intestine from
slaughtered animals from different so&ces and then processes. In urban areas, Need and Importance of
By-products Processing
persons get raw by-products fiom Slaughterhouse and process as per the facilities
available.

Check Your Progress 2

1) What are the benefits derived from by-products utilization?
................................................................................................................

................................................................................................................
2) What do you mean by hatchery by-products?
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................
3) Which are the by-products of poultry processing industry?
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................

1.7 LET US SUM LTP

In this unit, you would have understood the meaning of by-products fiom slaughter
houselmeat plant and poultry industry. Animal by-products include hide, skin,
bone, blood, intestine, horn, hoof, wool, hair, stomach content, animal fat, glands,
ear, snout, tail, liver, heart, brain, spleen, thymus etc.. These are classified into
edible and inedible by-products depending upon the purchasing power, food
habit, customs and religion of the consumers and the source and coi~ditionof the
raw materials. This is now clear to you, that proper utilization of these by-
products are very much needed for getting better returns from the animals,
improving environlnental sanitation, producing healthier and more productive
livestock and improving soil fertility, developing secondary rural industries and
creating new employment. Since by-products constitute about 50 per cent of the
live animal weight, it is very essential to utilize them profitably to increase returns.
Each and every component of animal body can be used for some purpose as
listed above.

1.7 KEY WORDS

Bristle : A bristle is a stif'f hair. Examp1e:Hair of pig.

By-products : A part and particle of value obtained from the animals

other than meat bone and fat.
Introduction of Animal Carcass : Dead animal or in slaughter house, the food animal
By-products
afterevisceration (removal of internal organs) is referred
as carcass.
Hide, skin : Skin h m large animals such as cattle, buffalo is referred
as hide, while that from small animals like sheep and
goats it is called skin.
Lard : Fat fiompig.

Offal : Portion of the animal which falls off the main carcass,
they can be either edible (liver, kidneys etc.) or inedible
(skin, gall bladder etc.).
Plasma : A fluid part of blood containing albumen, globulin and
fibrin
Serum : A portion of blood containing albumen.

Slaughter-house : A legally permitted place for the slaughter and dressing

of food animal for production of wholesome meat for
human consumption.
Slunk : Skin of an unborn calf.

Snout : Protruding portion of an animal's face, consisting of its

nose, mouth, and jaw.
Tallow : Fat of cattle.
- -

1.8 SOME USEFUL BOOKS

Biswas S. (2002). Monograph on "Meat Hygiene ". WBUAFS, University
Publication.

Gracey, I.F. and Collins, D.S. (1992). Meat Hygiene, 9thEdn.

Hui Y.H., Nip Wai-Kit, Rogers R. W. and Young O.A. (Editors). (2001). Meat
Science and Applications. Marcel Dekker, NC., New York.
Handbook ofAnimal Husbandy (2002), Indian Council of Agricultural Research,
New Delhi.
Ockerman, H.W and Hansen, C.L. (2000). Animal By-product Processing and
Utilization,Technornic Publishing Company, USA.
Mann. I. Processing and Utilization of Animal By-products. FA0
Agricultural Development Paper no. 75. FAO, UN.

1.9 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Check Your Progress 1

1) By-products of meat industry may be defined as everything from the abattoir

or butchers shop that is not directly sold as food or not included in the
 dressed carcass. Animals are generally slaughtered for producing meat for Need and Importance of
human consumption. While slaughtering food animals, apart from meat a By-products Processing
number of offals or by-products are also originated.
For example: skin, blood, bone, animal fat, horns, hooves, wool, hair, gastro-
intestinal tract, head, glands and organs etc..
2) The percentage of by-products in relation to live weight of buffalo, pig, goat
and poultry is as follows:
Animal Quantity of by-product (per cent)
Buffalo 70-73
Goat 70-72
pig 45-48
Poultry 40-45
3) List of fiveprimary animal by-products along with their secondary by-products
is given below:

Blood meal, albumen, haemoglobin, serum,

4) According to edibility of by-products, they are classified into edible by-

product and inedible by-product.
Edible by-products are those which are usually but not always consumed as
food items. They include the organs such as kidneys, brain, liver, heart,
tongue, ox tail, intestinal tract, gut and sweet bread (thymus).
Animals which die at the slaughter house prior to slaughter or those animals
or parts of aiiitnals which have failed to pass the meat inspection fall under
the category of inedible by-products. They include ears, lips, snout, teeth,
fetus, gall bladder, trimmings, fleshings, hooves, horns, hair, bristles, hide,
skin, dew claws etc..
Check Your Progress 2

1) By-products constitute about 50 per cent of the live weight of the animals
hence their proper utilization will improve returns to the producer. The main
advantage is income from by-products. The benefits derived kom by-products
utilization are described below:
Introduction of Animal i) Improved environmental sanitation: By products attract flies, dogs,
By-products vultures and jackals causing public nuisance and even the danger of
spreading diseases. The offals decompose rapidly, leading to
objectionableodour. Meat may get spoiled under this unsanitarycondition
and may serve as a vehicle of disease transmission. Proper and timely
utilization of by-products will raise the standard of slaughter house
hygiene.
ii) Healthier and mom productive liestock: The bones, blood, inedible
meat etc., can be used for the preparation Bone-meal, Blood-meal and
meat meal. These play a great role in the improvement of livestock by
supplying minerals and proteins.
iii) Development of secondary rural industries: Manufacture of
secondary by-products of animal origin leads to the establishment of
secondary rural industries. Example: hides and skin provides a sound
base for tanning industry, tallow and other greases lead to soap
rnanufhcturing.
iv) Price structure of meat: Retums derived fi-om utilization of by-products
can reduce the cost of production of meat. It influences the price of
meat and the livestock producer in turn will get high returns fiom his
animals.

v) Creation of new employment: The wasteful disposal of inedible offal

needs little or no man-power, but the conversion of offal into by-
products creates new employment and skills not only at the place of
production, but in the secondary industries based on such raw materials.

2) Poultry hatchery by-products comprise a mixture of egg shells, infertile eggs,

unhatched eggs, dead embryos, shell of hatched eggs and dead or culled
chicks. These can be converted into meal of high protein quality. These by-
products are cooked, dried and ground with or without removal of its fat.
The hatchery by-products meal can be added in the layer ration.

3) By-products of poultry processing industry may be defined as everything

from processing plant that may not be used as human food. These by-
products may be edible or inedible. These include feathers, blood, heads,
feet, intestines, lungs, pancreas, spleen and condemned birds.