Monitoring results of meat inspection of fattening pigs: disorders recorded and used in the literature

Collecting meat inspection results is mandatory in Germany. The information might be used for different purposes: as a means of surveillance, as a dat a pool for producers as well as for scientific use (on-line-systems, which should be used in the future). Having established such a system, it is poss ible to get information about animal disorders. In order to have data from different sources comparable, the same disorders and the same classificatio n should be used. At present only errated data is available, which might be only of limited information value. Also, the information value of data fro m meat inspection is low. However, if data about the slaughtered animal wou ld be monitored more precisely, also about condemnation of parts, the insig ht would be much more better. Lesions of lungs, liver, joints, skin and abs cesses are regarded to be most important. Only seldom the following items h ave been reported: inflammations of the lymph-nodes, the endocard, the musc les, spleen and calluses of the legs (carpus). However, they should be incl uded into a monitoring system also.