Application
This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to inspect emus and ostriches.
This unit is applicable to meat safety and Quality Assurance (QA) officers working in an emu and/or ostrich processing plant.
This unit must be delivered using Australian meat industry standards and regulations.
No occupational licensing, legislative or certification requirements are known to apply to this unit at the time of publication.
Elements and Performance Criteria
Element | Performance criteria |
Elements describe the essential outcomes. | Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element. |
1. Identify anatomical and physiological properties specific to ratites | 1.1 Identify structure of body system |
2. Perform ante-mortem inspection | 2.1 Identify procedures and principles for humane handling of ratites in accordance with hygiene and sanitation, workplace health and safety, and workplace requirements 2.2 Handle ratites humanely according to animal welfare regulations 2.3 Identify signs of common conditions during ante-mortem inspection and deal with them accordingly 2.4 Perform ante-mortem inspection in accordance with workplace health and safety and regulatory requirements 2.5 Identify QA issues relating to animal handling during ante-mortem inspection 2.6 Identify procedures for emergency and suspect slaughter 2.7 Complete reporting and recording requirements |
3. Assess suitability for slaughter | 3.1 Identify diseases and conditions affecting ratite suitability for slaughter and initiate appropriate action 3.2 Identify the signs of major exotic and notifiable diseases and report according to regulatory requirements 3.3 Take appropriate remedial action |
4. Perform post-mortem inspection | 4.1 Perform post-mortem inspection in accordance with regulatory requirements 4.2 Identify and detect abnormalities in ratites 4.3 Make disposition according to Australian Standards and work instructions 4.4 Identify exotic and notifiable diseases 4.5 Complete reporting and recording requirements |
Evidence of Performance
The candidate must inspect ratites. Evidence must demonstrate the candidate's consistency of performance over time on at least one species of ratite.
The candidate must:
perform ante-mortem and post-mortem inspection on ratites according to the Australian Standard
notify relevant authorities promptly following identification of exotic or notifiable diseases
prepare notification reports, including technical information for internal personnel and external authorities
work with processing team to inspect ratites and identify suspect birds in an efficient and timely manner
research and identify legislation and Australian Standards applicable to processing ratites
apply mathematical operations to establish regulatory compliance
identify and use relevant workplace information and documentation
identify common conditions and exotic and notifiable diseases in ratites
identify sources of repeated contamination and work with processing team to rectify problems
use relevant communication skills
Evidence of Knowledge
The candidate must demonstrate a broad factual, technical and theoretical knowledge of:
basic anatomical structure of ratites
specific hygiene and sanitation requirements associated with ratite processing
specific structural requirements for ratite processing
potential hazards associated with ratite processing
dressing and storage requirements for ratites
major diseases and defects in ratites
main products and by-products associated with ratite processing
Assessment Conditions
Competency must be demonstrated in a ratite processing plant.
Assessment must include ratite carcases and actual examples of pathology.
As a minimum, the following three forms of assessment must be used:
quiz of underpinning knowledge
workplace demonstration
workplace referee or third-party report of performance over time.
Assessors must satisfy current standards for RTOs.
Foundation Skills
Foundation Skills essential to performance are explicit in the performance criteria of this unit of competency.