Just kidding!!! As I took this photo, I was thinking that it could easily be mistaken for some kind of explosion, maybe from a mortar or rocket attack. It wasn't!
This is the site of a poultry slaughter/processing facility under construction in Anbar Province. These guys are the roofing crew working to melt the tar that will be used in construction of the roof. I think they were using old tires to fuel the flames under the big tank holding some molten tar.
We (USDA) have supported this project with financial support as well as technical advice. Much of the food supply in Iraq now is processed in very un-hygenic conditions. Livestock are slaughtered and processed on bare ground, in places without even running water, and no refrigeration! Meat may hang in the open environment for hours and hours.....even more. Can you imagine purchasing a roast that is covered with flies, and the temperature is 120 degrees? I once saw a small truck, just a pickup, with a load of dead fish in the bed of the truck. The fish appeared to have been dead for at least a few days. The farmer had them covered with a tarp, but the flies were buzzing all around! I don't think the fish were sanitary in any stretch of the imagination!
When completed, this facility will provide a hygenic location where Iraqi-grown poultry is processed under clean conditions, with water and refrigeration. They'll be quick-chilled, packaged and shipped via refrigerated truck to the nearest city.
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