- published: 20 Jul 2015
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A slaughterhouse or abattoir i/ˈæbətwɑr/ is a facility where animals are killed for consumption as food products. Slaughterhouses which process meat not intended for human consumption are sometimes referred to as Knacker's yards or Knackeries.
In the United States, around nine billion (an unverified number) animals are slaughtered every year[citation needed] (this includes about 150.4 million cattle, bison, sheep, hogs, and goats and 8.9 billion chickens, turkeys, and ducks) in 5,700 slaughterhouses and processing plants employing 527,000 workers;[citation needed] in 2009, 13,450,000 long tons (13,670,000 t) of beef were consumed in the U.S. alone. In Canada, 650 million animals are killed annually. In the European Union, the annual figure is 300 million cattle, sheep, and pigs, and four billion (an unverified number) chickens.[citation needed]
Slaughtering animals on a large scale poses significant logistical problems and public health requirements.[citation needed] Public aversion to meat packing in many cultures influences the location of slaughterhouses. In addition, some religions stipulate certain conditions for the slaughter of animals.