The aim of this Guideline is to provide assistance to producers of raw red meat covered under Category 1 of the Global

Global Standard for Food Safety Issue 8.

Category 1 is defined as chilled or frozen raw red meat without any additional ingredients. It can be whole carcasses, portions, muscle meat or organs (e.g. liver). The guideline does not offer guidance for products under Category 3, ‘raw prepared products’, which covers:

•  further processing of raw meat, such as marinating and curing, where there are added ingredients (e.g. salt, spices)

•  size reduction processes, such as mincing, grinding, dicing or mechanically deboning

•  further processing or preparation (including heating, curing and smoking)

This guideline is aimed at producers of meat from farmed cattle, pigs, sheep and goats, which are the largest part of the red meat sector. Although much of the guidance will be applicable to other species, the guidance has not been written to cover these species. Any site slaughtering or processing different or exotic species will need to consider the risks specific to the animals involved, such as the use of veterinary medicines for horses.

The operations covered may be any, or a combination of, the following:

•  slaughter and dress – to be sold as carcasses, halves or quarters

•  primary cutting

Use of BRCGS intellectual property

Information on how you can use BRCGS Standards, guidance and published content can be found here. You can also find a list of answers to common questions on how BRCGS content can be used here.