Abstract
Gralloching of sika deer (Cervus nippon) in slaughterhouses is urged in case the carcasses are supplied for human consumption in Japan. Gralloching in the field is permitted in the European Union for the purpose of reducing contamination risk and cooling the carcass as soon as possible. We studied the hygiene status of dressed carcasses that were gralloched in the field by comparing with those in the slaughterhouse to assess the possibility of introducing this method in Japan. We examined 10 animals gralloched in the field, which were culled in Nishi-Okoppe village located in the northern part of Hokkaido, and 4 animals from a slaughterhouse located in the western part of Hokkaido. The enteropathogenic bacteria Campylobacter, Salmonella, Yersinia nor Escherichia coli were not detected in both cases. Counts of viable bacteria were also low in both cases, and that trend was noticeable during the snowy season. It was possible to gralloch hygienically in the field in an appropriate way, but the method requires adequate knowledge and skills in meat hygiene. When introducing this method to Japan, a certificate, a kind of Deer stalking certificate in England, should be introduced at the same instant to assure an adequate ability to handle carcasses.
