Public abattoirs in Spain: History, construction characteristics and the possibility of their reuse

During the final decades of the 19th century and first half of the 20th, over 2100 public abattoirs were built in Spain with the aim of improving the hygiene conditions associated with the processing of meat for human consumption, and to facilitate its marketing. Strict new health requirements that came into force in the 1970s, and the progressive substitution of public abattoirs by more modern, private, industrial-type slaughterhouses with larger handling capacities, gradually led to the closure and abandonment of these public buildings. This article traces the history of public abattoirs in Spain, examines their main architectural characteristics, and discusses the possibility of their reuse for new purposes. A specific survey on this typology of buildings, built between 1888 and 1930, has been carried out throughout the country (10 vacant abattoirs and 18 reused buildings) during the period 2008–2012. The paper provides ideas for the preservation of this interesting agro-industrial heritage and examines how some vacant abattoirs have found new uses as libraries, sports centres, exhibition centres, auditoria, museums, offices, restaurants and bird recovery centres, etc.