Alberta Meat Facility Requirements: Standards, Records, and Daily Operations

Provincially regulated Alberta meat facilities must comply with the Meat Inspection Act, Meat Inspection Regulation (AR 42/2003), and the Meat Facility Standards (MFS, 2022). MFS Section 15.1 of MIR requires operators to comply with MFS as amended or replaced.

Who this applies to

Alberta provincial meat facilities — abattoirs, processing plants, and other licence types under provincial regulation. Federally licensed CFIA establishments are outside InspectionDay's current Alberta release scope.

What it means operationally

• Written programs for sanitation, water, humane handling, manufacturing controls, and other MFS sections applicable to the facility.
• Pre-operational inspections verifying sanitation before operations begin.
• Records demonstrating programs are implemented — made on the day of the activity.
• Traceability, humane handling, and slaughter records where abattoir activities apply.
• Inspection readiness for Alberta inspection services.

What should be recorded

MFS expects written programs and records that reflect actual operations — pre-op inspections, sanitation monitoring, water monitoring and testing where applicable, process controls, humane handling and stunning events, slaughter sessions, and corrective follow-up. Alberta publishes documentation examples; some are required records and some are voluntary examples — confirm against MFS and your licence type.