[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Health of the Township of Dover (now Toms River) 7-15-1974 by Ord. No. 5-74 as Ch. 123 of the 1973 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Animals and animal establishments — See Chs. 165 and 516.
Uniform construction codes — See Ch. 252.
Land use and development regulations — See Ch. 348.
Dumping — See Ch. 524.
No slaughterhouses shall be erected within the limits of the Township of Toms River without first obtaining the written approval of the site from the Board of Health.
No person, persons, firm or corporation shall hereafter engage in the slaughterhouse business or in the slaughtering of any swine, sheep, cattle, goats, chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, pigeons, birds and any other domestic animal or fowl, within the limits of the Township of Toms River, or permit the slaughtering of any of the same within his establishment, unless and until a permit therefor is first obtained from the Board of Health; said permit to be for such term and upon such conditions as the Board of Health may require.
No person, persons, firm or corporation engaged in the slaughterhouse business or engaged in the slaughtering of any swine, sheep, cattle, goats, chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, pigeons, birds and any other domestic animal or fowl, within the limits of the Township of Toms River, shall so engage in such business or permit the slaughtering of any of the same within his establishment unless and until a permit therefor is first obtained from the Board of Health; said permit to be for such terms and upon such conditions as the Board of Health may require.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
SLAUGHTERHOUSE OR SLAUGHTERHOUSE BUSINESS
An establishment where more than two cows, or three calves or 10 swine, or more than 100 rabbits or more than 1,000 chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, pigeons, or birds, are slaughtered within the period of one year.
After the passage of this chapter, the premises or places or sites, or any part or parts thereof, in the Township of Toms River, to be used in whole or in part for the erection, operation, conduct or maintenance of a slaughterhouse, shall be restricted as to location.
A. 
No license to construct, operate, conduct or maintain a slaughterhouse within the limits of the Township of Toms River shall be granted or issued unless and until the application for the same shall be approved by the Board of Health as to location or site, suitability and fitness for such use. The Board of Health reserves the right to designate the location of a slaughtering place on any premises. The application for such license shall be accompanied by a plan giving the complete details of the premises intended to be used for the erection or operation of a slaughterhouse, and in case of new buildings, plans and specifications should be submitted to the Board of Health for approval when application is made. Said application shall also contain a description of all buildings and dwellings within a radius of 1,500 feet from the boundary line of the premises proposed to be used for the erection and operation of a slaughterhouse, and also giving the full names and addresses of the owners and occupants of all the properties within said radius of 1,500 feet from the premises on which the proposed slaughterhouse is to be erected or operated.
B. 
Upon receipt of such application and plans, the Board of Health of the Township of Toms River shall fix a time for the consideration of the issuance of a license therefor, which time shall be not less than 10 days nor more than 20 days after the receipt of such application. Notice shall be sent to the owners and occupants of all properties within a radius of 1,500 feet of the premises sought to be used for slaughterhouse purposes, informing them of the receipt of the application and of the time set for the hearing of objections, if any, to the granting of the license.
C. 
The application, plans and specifications shall be approved or rejected within a period of three weeks from the date of filing, and when approved, the Clerk of the Board of Health shall issue the necessary license therefor.
The Board of Health of Toms River Township may hereafter adopt rules and regulations pertaining to the erection, construction, operation or maintenance of slaughterhouses within the limits of the Township of Toms River, by a resolution or resolutions adopted at any regular meeting of the Board of Health or by the enactment of amendments to this chapter.
The granting of such license shall not be approved by the Board of Health whenever it appears that the granting of the same is or may be hazardous and detrimental to human health, or likely to create a nuisance.
Any slaughterhouse license issued hereunder shall not be transferable. Should a person, firm or corporation holding a slaughterhouse license desire to erect a new building, operate in a different place or sell his or its business to another, a new application for a license must be made.
No swine, sheep, cattle, goats, chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, pigeons, birds and any other domestic animal or fowl shall be kept in the same room in which slaughtering is done.
In every slaughterhouse or place where swine, sheep, cattle, goats, chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, pigeons, birds and any other domestic animal or fowl are slaughtered, hereafter constructed or maintained in the Township of Toms River, the same shall have tight floors made of cement, or of tile laid in cement, brick, asphalt or other suitable and impervious material, properly sloped to a well-trapped and permanently graded outlet having a direct communication with a sewer or a properly constructed cesspool; the walls thereof shall be covered to a height of seven feet with some smooth, impervious material and there shall be a tight-fitting door covered with impervious material. Every slaughterhouse shall be supplied with an adequate supply of good, clean, wholesome water, and such an arrangement of hose or pipes as will enable the walls, floors and yards to be effectively washed; and every such slaughterhouse, apartments and pens connected therewith shall be properly lighted and ventilated according to the direction and satisfaction of the Board of Health. The ceilings, walls, cellars, partitions, etc., shall be kept in a clean condition, and when necessary they shall be washed, scrubbed, painted or otherwise treated.
The owner, agent, tenant, lessee or occupant of all slaughterhouses shall thoroughly and effectively wash the walls and floors thereof at least once in every 24 hours, and during the months from May to November, inclusive, shall distribute twice each week not less than 25 pounds of chloride of lime or other disinfectant about their premises, and also remove contents of any manure pit or pile on the premises once in each week during the said months.
No blood pit, dung pit or privy well shall remain or be constructed within any slaughterhouse.
Where the floors or other parts of the building, or tables or parts of the equipment, are so old or are in such poor condition that they cannot be readily kept in a clean condition, they shall be removed and replaced.
All trucks, trays and other receptacles, all chutes, platforms, racks, tables. knives, cleavers, saws and other tools, and all utensils, machinery and vehicles used in moving, handling, cutting, chopping, mixing, canning or otherwise processing meats, shall be thoroughly cleansed before using and be kept in a clean condition at all times.
Suitable receptacles shall be provided for blood, offal and similar materials, and such materials shall be put into the offal tank, or when said tank is not available, removed from the premises as soon as possible, but under no circumstances shall they be permitted to accumulate for more than one day in the summertime, or two days in the wintertime. In no case shall they be permitted to accumulate in, under or around the slaughterhouse.
All water closets, toilets, rooms and dressing rooms shall be entirely separated from compartments in which carcasses or parts thereof are cured, stored, packed, handled or prepared. When such rooms open into compartments into which meat or meat food products are handled, they must, when this is considered necessary by the Board of Health, be provided with proper ventilated vestibules and with automatically closing doors. They shall be properly lighted, ventilated and kept in a clean condition.
The rooms or compartments in which meats or meat food products are prepared, cured, stored, packed or otherwise handled, insofar as the same is possible, shall be free from odors from toilet rooms, catch basins, casing departments, tank rooms, hide cellars, etc., and shall be kept free from flies and other vermin by screening or other methods.
Hides or pelts shall not be stored on the floor of any room used for slaughtering, storing or preparing meats or meat food products, but shall be stored in a room set aside for such purpose.
Every owner, lessee or occupant of a slaughterhouse in this Township shall, at all reasonable times, afford free access to every part of such premises to the members of the Board of Health, or any officer thereof, for the purpose of inspecting such premises.
The granting of any license, or refusal to grant any license, to construct, operate, conduct or maintain a slaughterhouse within the limits of the Township of Toms River, shall be subject to the requirements contained in this chapter and in such rules and regulations as may be adopted by the Board of Health of Toms River Township and such regulations as may be approved by the Board of Health of the State of New Jersey.
The annual fee for such slaughterhouse license shall be $25, and shall permit the holder thereof to operate, conduct and maintain a slaughterhouse for the period of time hereafter determined by the Board of Health and as set forth and expressed in such license.
Any person or persons, firm or corporation failing to comply with or violating any of the provisions of this chapter or of any rules or regulations thereafter adopted by the Board of Health shall, in addition to the revocation of the license issued, be subject, upon conviction thereof, to forfeit and pay a penalty of not less than $25 nor more than $100 for each offense, the amount thereof to be fixed by the Magistrate of the Township of Toms River or any Magistrate having jurisdiction in the case to be recovered as provided for by statute; and in the event that the said defendant (except corporations), after execution has been issued, shall fail, refuse or neglect to pay the amount of the judgment against him, and all costs and charges incident thereto, said defendant may, in default of said payment, be committed by the said Magistrate to the County jail for a period not exceeding 90 days.
In addition to the imposition of the penalty or penalties herein prescribed, the Board of Health may, at its discretion, revoke any license or permit issued hereunder for any violation of the provisions of this chapter or of any rules or regulations of the Board of Health or order of the State Sanitary Code, whenever, after written notice from the Board of Health, the owner or person in charge of such slaughterhouse fails or refuses to remove or remedy the condition complained of. Before any license or permit heretofore issued shall be revoked, the Board of Health shall fix a time and place of hearing, which notice shall be served upon the licensee at least five days before the date set for hearing; such notice shall specify the charges complained of against said licensee and the purpose of the hearing. At such hearings the licensee shall have an opportunity to be heard in his or its behalf. After such hearing, the Board of Health shall render its decisions with respect to such charges.
In all allied matters that are regulated by the laws of the State of New Jersey, such laws shall control where the requirements are in excess of this chapter. This chapter shall control in all cases where the state law requirements are less than herein contained.