Surgical procedures with anaesthesia and analgesia - pork
Level: Advanced
In addition to anaesthesia given during castration, administering analgesia during the procedure can prolong the effect of the anaesthesia, and has also been shown to reduce the amount of pain-related behaviour after the procedure. By requiring that analgesia must always be administered in addition to anaesthesia, contracting authorities can contribute to surgical procedures causing less stress and pain for the animals.
Details
- Type:
- Technical specification
- ID:
- 11397
- Group:
- Pork
Criterion text
Pork must be derived from animals that have been anaesthetised during any and all surgical procedures. If piglets are castrated surgically, they must be anaesthetised for the procedure. In addition to anaesthesia, analgesia (NSAIDs) must be administered during any and all surgical procedures.
Verification
Upon request the supplier shall be ready to present, for example, one of the following:
- Certification that meets the requirement, such as IP Sigill gris, KRAV or other certification showing that the requirement is met.
Proposed follow-up
Monitoring of compliance during the contract period can for example be done through sampling at one or several occasions of one or several products for which the criterion applies. The supplier can prove that the product(s) meet the requirement through, e.g,:
- Product labelling, e.g., Svenskt Sigill, KRAV or other labels showing that the requirement is met.
- Other written documentation showing that the requirement is met, e.g., audit records, veterinary records or inspection reports.
Information about the criterion
The criteria may limit market availability for individual products.
Motive
One reason why pigs are castrated is to avoid so-called boar smell, an unpleasant smell and taste in the meat of some uncastrated male pigs. Another reason for castration is to reduce the incidence of aggressive and sexual behaviour in male pigs. Surgical castration without anaesthesia and analgesia can cause unnecessary pain and suffering to the animal. In Sweden and several other member states, it is forbidden to castrate male pigs without anaesthesia and pain relief, but it still occurs in other countries within and outside the EU.
In 2010, on the initiative of the EU Commission, a voluntary declaration was drawn up on alternatives to surgical castration, which meant, among other things, that the ambition was that surgical castration would cease completely by 20181. An alternative to surgical castration is vaccination against boar taint, so-called immunocastration. Vaccination against boar taint means that the pig is not castrated through an operative procedure. Certain consequences of vaccination, for example work environment risks and uncertainty around consumer reactions, have been noticed. There is a vaccine that is approved by the EU and can therefore be used in Sweden, among other places. However, there are currently no certifications that require immunocastration, which means that it is difficult to set requirements and follow up in public procurement.
Versions history
The version date indicates when the sustainability criterion was created or last updated. Last reviewed dated tells when we last checked that the sustainability criterion still is relevant.
- Current ID
- 11397
- Version date
- 2020-03-25
2020-03-25: original version