Eid sacrifices go online in COVID times

Our Correspondent

The need to minimise social contact in the time of COVID-19 has ‘taken Eid sacrifices online’, according to reports News. The animal sacrifice, which is part of Eid Al Adha, usually sees long crowds at abattoirs to select the animal for sacrifice and collect the processed meat.
But this year, the special circumstances have meant a change in rituals; many in Abu Dhabi and Dubai are placing orders online through licensed apps, where the service providers undertake the sacrifice in municipality abattoirs and then either deliver the meat home to customers or ready it for being pick up from the slaughterhouse, the Gulf News reported.
According to a representative at a livestock trading firm in Abu Dhabi, the services were available since last year but this Eid season has made demand very high.
Veterinarians at the slaughterhouses ensure that all livestock that is processed is first checked and certified as disease-free. Since the beginning of the year, Abu Dhabi slaughterhouses have issued 372 veterinary certificates and seen an increase in orders as a result of the convenient digital services that are offered.
From July 29 onwards, additional cleaning and maintenance services are being made available onsite. These facilities ensure that processed meat is delivered to customers in their cars, and daily sterilisation at the abattoirs is undertaken to ensure overall safety.
Priority will be given for the elderly and people of determination, the Abu Dhabi City Municipality has announced. It also specified the services through which people can pre-book slaughtering services in Abu Dhabi’s municipal abattoirs.
Dubai Municipality has also announced that its facilities will offer home-delivery services. In Dubai, smart applications offering sacrificial meat include Al Mawashi, Turki, Shabab Al Freej and Dhabayih Aldaar.
Some residents are opting to donate their sacrificial meat to the needy in other countries.