Meat inspectors decide whether meat is fit to eat in two examinations: ante-mortem inspection of the live animal and post-mortem inspection of the carcass and offal. The Codex Code of Hygienic Practice for Meat, CXC 58-2005 (editorial amendments 2013), sets out the judgement categories, and the competent authority sets the criteria inspectors apply.
This guide is for veterinary meat inspectors, slaughterhouse veterinarians and the food control teams that supervise them.
What happens at ante-mortem inspection?
Under section 6.3 of CXC 58-2005, every animal presented for slaughter is inspected by a competent person, individually or as a lot. The inspector first confirms the animal's identity, so that conditions at its farm of origin and any quarantine controls are taken into account.
The examination itself looks at behaviour, demeanour and appearance, and at signs of disease in the live animal. Its purpose is to support the post-mortem stage, not replace it.
The code lists situations that call for special controls, which can include refusing the animal entry. These are animals that are too dirty, animals that died in transit, a suspected zoonotic or quarantine disease, missing identification, and missing or inadequate declarations from the producer, for example on veterinary medicines.
Timing matters. Inspection should happen as soon as practicable after the animals arrive. Only animals that are sufficiently rested go to slaughter. If more than 24 hours pass between ante-mortem inspection and slaughter, the code says the inspection should be repeated.
What judgements can the inspector make before slaughter?
CXC 58-2005 gives seven ante-mortem judgement categories. In short, an animal can be:
- passed for slaughter
- passed after a second inspection, once it has rested or a temporary condition has cleared
- passed as a "suspect", slaughtered separately because post-mortem findings could lead to condemnation
- condemned for public health reasons
- condemned for meat suitability reasons
- sent for emergency slaughter, when a suspect animal would deteriorate if slaughter were delayed
- condemned for animal health reasons under national law
The suspect category is the link between the two examinations. The ante-mortem result should reach the post-mortem inspector before the carcass arrives at the inspection point, so the final judgement uses both. Condemned animals are identified at once and handled so they cannot contaminate others. The reason for condemnation is recorded.
What does post-mortem inspection check?
Section 9.5 of the code requires post-mortem inspection of every carcass and its relevant parts. The inspector combines information from the farm and from ante-mortem inspection with organoleptic examination of the head, carcass and viscera.
The competent authority decides which parts are viewed, palpated or incised, based on risk. Where lymph nodes need incising, the code calls for systematic, multiple incisions. Laboratory tests cover hazards the eye cannot find, such as Trichinella, chemical residues and contaminants. The inspection system must also confirm proper stunning and bleeding, and the authority must be able to slow or stop the line so inspection keeps pace.
The slaughterhouse operator has duties too. It must keep each carcass and its parts identified together until inspection is complete. It must present heads skinned enough to reach the lymph nodes. Staff must not remove or alter any evidence of disease before the inspector sees it.
Inspection is tailored to the animals in front of you. The code gives two examples. Finding cysts of Taenia saginata in one part of a bovine carcass calls for more intensive checks across the whole carcass. Cattle that reacted to a tuberculin test get extra procedures.
How is a carcass judged after post-mortem inspection?
Section 9.6 bases post-mortem judgement mainly on food-borne risk to human health. The table paraphrases the code's categories for edible parts. Check the full text and your national rules before you apply them.
| Judgement (paraphrased from CXC 58-2005, 9.6) | What happens to the meat |
|---|---|
| Safe and suitable for human consumption | Released, with the health mark the authority specifies |
| Safe and suitable once a prescribed process is applied | Released only after a process such as cooking or freezing that the authority has verified |
| Held on suspicion | Kept under the inspector's control until further inspection or tests are complete |
| Unsafe for humans, usable for another purpose | Diverted to pet food, feed or industrial use under controls that stop it re-entering the food chain |
| Unsafe for humans, not usable | Condemned and destroyed |
| Unsuitable for humans, usable for another purpose | Diverted under controls, for quality rather than safety reasons |
| Unsuitable for humans, not usable | Condemned and destroyed |
| Unsafe for animal health reasons | Disposed of as national animal health law requires |
Some manuals, including the AGS guideline described below, use four working terms instead: unrestricted release, conditional release, partial condemnation and total condemnation. Whatever words you use, each should map to one of the code's outcomes.
Why do the OIE "List A" and "List B" no longer apply?
Older inspection manuals sort diseases into OIE List A and List B. Those lists no longer exist. Under Resolution XXXI of 27 May 2004, all List A and List B diseases were combined into a single list from 1 January 2005, according to the World Organisation for Animal Health.
The organisation itself has changed name. It adopted the name World Organisation for Animal Health in 2003 and has used the acronym WOAH since 2022. Its listed diseases are set out in Chapter 1.3 of the Terrestrial Animal Health Code, as its animal diseases portal explains.
For an inspection manual, this means two changes. Refer to "WOAH-listed diseases" and to your country's own notifiable disease list, not to Lists A and B. Then check each disease entry against the current list, because WOAH adds and removes diseases through its own procedure. The code also expects notifiable diseases found at post-mortem to be reported to the national authority and to the animal's owner.
Who makes the judgement, and what must be recorded?
The code says judgements are made only by competent persons, meaning people with the training, knowledge, skills and ability for the task. The competent authority sets those requirements and defines the roles of official inspectors and veterinary inspectors. It also keeps final responsibility for verifying that inspection and judgement meet the rules.
A judgement that is not recorded cannot be checked. Based on the code, an inspection service should be able to show:
- ante-mortem records with animal or lot identity, findings and the judgement for each
- identification of suspect animals carried through to the post-mortem stage
- post-mortem findings and judgements, with the reason for every condemnation
- laboratory requests and results for held carcasses
- reports of notifiable diseases and residue findings to the authority and the owner
- feedback to producers, and trend analysis of findings over time
Hygiene during slaughter and dressing is the other half of the picture. Our guide to slaughterhouse hygiene covers it.
Halal slaughter adds its own requirements on top of hygiene inspection. CXC 58-2005 points to the Codex general guidelines for use of the term "halal" (CXG 24-1997). Our guide to halal cattle slaughter covers those controls.
How AGS can help
The Meat Inspection technical guideline is a single editable Microsoft Word document of 27 chapters and four annexes. It covers ante-mortem examination, prohibitions on slaughter, post-mortem examination and disease-by-disease judgements, including bovine tuberculosis, parasites, diseases of camels and emergency slaughter. The annexes hold a judgement quick reference, ante-mortem and post-mortem record forms, and a terms index.
Frequently asked questions
Is ante-mortem inspection done on every animal?
Yes. CXC 58-2005 expects every animal presented for slaughter to be inspected, either individually or as a lot.
What is a "suspect" animal?
An animal passed for slaughter under special conditions because the inspector expects post-mortem findings could lead to partial or total condemnation. It is slaughtered separately and its ante-mortem findings go to the post-mortem inspector.
Does the Codex code set the judgement for each disease?
No. It sets the judgement categories and the principles. The competent authority sets the judgement criteria, so disease-by-disease rules come from national legislation and guidance.
Is WOAH the same organisation as the OIE?
Yes. The OIE was founded in 1924 and now uses the name World Organisation for Animal Health and the acronym WOAH.
AGS provides independent documentation toolkits. This guide and the referenced guideline are not affiliated with, endorsed by or approved by the Codex Alimentarius Commission, WOAH or any veterinary or food control authority.
Reviewed October 2026. Facts checked against the sources current at publication.
