Towards an industry-wide, multilevel evaluation framework for pig meat inspection: potential applications and implementation challenges.

In Denmark, the Yellow Card scheme enforces restrictions on pig herds exceeding official permitted limits for antimicrobial use (AMU). To assess if a Yellow Card is related to poor animal health, we examined the association between AMU and the health status of Danish finishers using meat inspection data as a proxy for pig health. We included meat inspection findings in 10.5 million finishers delivered to 9 Danish abattoirs between 2016 and 2020 from herds classified as having a low, medium, or high AMU (Yellow Card herds). The prevalence of meat inspection findings was calculated and analysed in mixed-effects logistic regression models to determine the associations between each of eight selected lesions and AMU level while also considering the effect of herd size, location (east or west) and herd type (indoor or outdoor). Despite differences in AMU, only minor differences in meat inspection lesions were present. The overall result of the multivariable modelling was that herds with a medium AMU level were associated with the lowest prevalence of meat inspection lesions - observed for five out of the eight lesions investigated. Moreover, large herds were associated with a lower prevalence of meat inspection lesions than small herds - observed for seven out of eight lesions. The prevalence of lung and tail lesions was higher for herds in the western region of Denmark compared to the eastern regions, and the prevalence of tail lesions, arthritis and osteomyelitis was higher in outdoor herds compared to indoor herds. Hence, both a high and a low AMU could be linked with health and welfare issues. The results indicate that the advisory role of the herd veterinarian is pivotal in preventing adverse effects of antimicrobial reduction measures on animal health and welfare, in particular, if the Yellow Card limits are reduced further.

Challenges and opportunities of using meat inspection data to improve pig health traits by breeding: A review

We aimed to study the potential use of carcass condemnation data of broiler chicken slaughterhouses in Brazil as indicators in an animal welfare monitoring program, and to identify points to be addressed to increase data reliability. Data from 2010 to 2015 in the states of Parana (PR), Santa Catarina (SC) and Rio Grande do Sul (RS) were used. Fractures and bruising were recorded together, representing the most prevalent welfare problem, followed by skin lesion or inflammation. In PR, progressive increases on injury, arthritis, ineffective bleeding, and air sacculitis condemnation may reveal important welfare aspects. High correlation between AWI within PR was more commonly observed than in RS and SC, perhaps as a result of earlier implementation of local meat inspection standardization. Principal component analysis showed changes on condemnation data pattern in PR after standardization, pointing injury and Escherichia coli problems as the main causes for condemnation related to animal welfare. There is considerable potential to improve animal health and welfare surveillance using meat inspection structure that is already in place for food safety purposes, provided that the competent authority harmonizes the procedure of meat inspection among the States, sets specific animal welfare outcomes to be monitored, and integrates condemnation, transport and flock data. It seems crucial to update data collection to establish a routine that allows risk analysis regarding both food safety and animal welfare. In this regard, cooperative work between Federal Inspection and companies seems an interesting approach to promote transparency of the production processes, which would benefit society and animals.

This evaluation was designed to review the condemnation rate of poultry meat as well as grossly detectable abnormalities and conditions (GDACs) encountered in German poultry slaughter houses from 2002 to 2017 to determine which findings could indicate retrospective health conditions of live poultry. Modern chicken breeds for fattening are selected especially for fast growing and an optimal feed conversion together with a high proportion of the most valuable breast meat. In contrast, breeds for laying hens are selected for maximal egg production and less muscle volume. However, the unidirectional genetic selection focused to a higher muscle/bone-relation or maximal laying productivity has created (in connection with modern animal husbandry) breeds which are very sensitive for specific diseases and syndromes if their environment, feed and management is imbalanced. The evaluation of German meat inspection data concerning the overall condemnation rate from 2002 to 2006/2017 and GDACs from 2002 to 2017 indicates an almost constant rate both for the condemnation and the GDACs of broilers, laying hens and turkeys. The overall condemnation rate for broiler oscillates between 1 and 2% with falling tendency until 2014 and since then an increase for 2017 to 2.8%. For laying hens the portion of meat condemned amounts for an average rate of approximately 3.6%. The condemnation rate for turkey meat varies between 0.8 and 1.4% with a slight increase of condemnation since 2015. Although GDACs are created for food hygiene purposes, many of them like ascites, dermatitis and leg irritations arise undoubtful from animal health and animal welfare conditions. These findings together with the GDACs like hematoma, bruises, and breast blister were selected to indicate health conditions of live poultry. According to the evaluation of existing meat inspection for the last two decades the overall condemnation rate and most GDACs remained on the same level and could not prove a progress in an enhanced health status of poultry. Although the current scope of meat inspection performance is primarily to safeguard consumer health, a thorough evaluation of suitable findings and performance indicators associated with animal health and welfare would complement future meat inspection outcome.

BackgroundThe slaughterhouse is a central processing point for food animals and thus a source of both demographic data (age, breed, sex) and health-related data (reason for condemnation and condemned portions) that are not available through other sources. Using these data for syndromic surveillance is therefore tempting. However many possible reasons for condemnation and condemned portions exist, making the definition of relevant syndromes challenging.The objective of this study was to determine a typology of cattle with at least one portion of the carcass condemned in order to define syndromes. Multiple factor analysis (MFA) in combination with clustering methods was performed using both health-related data and demographic data.ResultsAnalyses were performed on 381,186 cattle with at least one portion of the carcass condemned among the 1,937,917 cattle slaughtered in ten French abattoirs. Results of the MFA and clustering methods led to 12 clusters considered as stable according to year of slaughter and slaughterhouse. One cluster was specific to a disease of public health importance (cysticercosis). Two clusters were linked to the slaughtering process (fecal contamination of heart or lungs and deterioration lesions). Two clusters respectively characterized by chronic liver lesions and chronic peritonitis could be linked to diseases of economic importance to farmers. Three clusters could be linked respectively to reticulo-pericarditis, fatty liver syndrome and farmer’s lung syndrome, which are related to both diseases of economic importance to farmers and herd management issues. Three clusters respectively characterized by arthritis, myopathy and Dark Firm Dry (DFD) meat could notably be linked to animal welfare issues. Finally, one cluster, characterized by bronchopneumonia, could be linked to both animal health and herd management issues.ConclusionThe statistical approach of combining multiple factor analysis with cluster analysis showed its relevance for the detection of syndromes using available large and complex slaughterhouse data. The advantages of this statistical approach are to i) define groups of reasons for condemnation based on meat inspection data, ii) help grouping reasons for condemnation among a list of various possible reasons for condemnation for which a consensus among experts could be difficult to reach, iii) assign each animal to a single syndrome which allows the detection of changes in trends of syndromes to detect unusual patterns in known diseases and emergence of new diseases.

QUALITY-oriented meat production has grown during the past decade and its aim is to improve the harmonisation of product characteristics and consumer demands. Consumer concerns about quality are not limited...

Tail biting lesions are a potential measure of on-farm animal welfare, as a large range of stressors increase the risk for tail biting outbreaks. Further, tail biting is a major challenge, as lesions due to tail biting decrease animal welfare and health, as well as production efficiency and carcass quality. The aim of this study was to suggest a tail scoring system for use at slaughterhouses processing undocked pigs, and to link tail lesion scores to meat inspection data. A further aim was to suggest a definition for an intact enough tail. To validate the suggested scoring system we assessed tails before and after scalding and compared results to pathological examinations. In total, 14,433 tails were scored, and 117 tails were collected for pathological examination. After scalding, 49.2% of all tails were scored as fully intact. Of tails with lesions 2.5% were scored as having major acute wounds (>2 cm), while 11.6% had minor acute wounds (<2 cm), and 36.7% healed lesions. Intact tails were on average 31.5 cm (SD 2.5 cm) long. Lesion scored at the slaughter-line agreed well with the pathological assessment. Tail lesions were associated with several meat inspection findings: tails with more severe lesions and of shorter length increased the risk for meat inspection findings to a higher degree. A detailed lesion scoring method helps to identify carcasses at risk for condemnations, as well as being a potential method for on-farm welfare estimation. We suggest that a system for scoring tail lesions in undocked pigs should utilize a combination of scoring of the lesion and measuring the tail length. As bite marks or bruises on an otherwise intact tail were not a concern for meat hygiene, we suggest the definition of an intact enough tail could allow the inclusion of tails with these mild changes. Meat inspection findings in carcasses with tails scored as healed, but with no fresh lesions, and with more than 75% of the average intact length remaining were rather similar to those of fully intact tails. Based on these findings we suggest that a tail of this length, and with no visible fresh lesions could also be considered intact enough.

Aim: The present study was conducted to assess the animal welfare measures for safe and wholesome meat production as well to understand different roles performed by delegated institutions in ensuring quality meat production. Materials and Methods: Semi-structured interview schedule was administered to 40 butchers and 40 veterinary officers of state department of animal husbandry, Himachal Pradesh. Result: It was found that open slaughtering was common (87.50%), animals did not have sufficient water provisions and often the lairage premises were devoid of adequate light thereby making ante-mortem and post mortem inspection difficult. Off feeding, offering potable water to animals before slaughtering was also less followed practice. Therefore, many a times the welfare of animals was not taken into consideration. Regular meat inspection was performed as an additional duty, by few (22.50%) veterinarians only. It was found that veterinarian's role was restricted to meat inspection only. The issue of license for slaughtering activities was the responsibility of district administration/municipal bodies. Conclusion: The study recommends appropriate legislations for greater role of veterinarians so as to promote quality meat hygienic practices thereby promoting animal and human welfare.

Background: Indian Dairy Industry is vital to the growth of rural economy of India and employing good dairy farming practices is a sustainable approach to achieving this goal. Good dairy farming practices, according to FAO, are about implementation of effective and suitable practices on dairy farms so that the intended use of dairy products and by-products could be achieved while ensuring the farm business remains economically viable. The aim of the present study was to analyze the technological gap in adoption of good dairy farming practices among dairy farmers. Methods: Anand district was selected purposively. For the estimation of technological gap, six major components of dairy farming viz, animal health, hygienic milking, animal nutrition, animal welfare, environmental and socio-economic management practices of animals were used. Result: The study results indicate that nearly three-fifths of the respondents exhibited a medium level of overall technological gap in good dairy farming practices, followed by 27 per cent of respondents showing a low level of technological gap. Comprehensive awareness and training programs should be crafted to educate farmers about the importance and implementation of effective dairy farming practices, with a focus on animal health, hygienic milking, nutrition, welfare, environmental management and socio-economic aspects. Strengthening of extension services, financial incentives and formulation of regulatory frameworks is crucial in bridging the technological gap in good dairy farming practices.

High biosecurity and welfare standards in fattening pig farms are associated with reduced antimicrobial use

Simple SummaryDue to the increase in global demand for animal-derived products, it is essential to make livestock production more ethical and sustainable. This review focuses on the welfare of small ruminants in the context of climate change and heat stress. High temperatures negatively impact animals’ health, reproduction, and productivity. Precision livestock farming technologies, including sensors and automated systems, can detect in real time early signs of stress or disease and milk quality, allowing faster responses for predicting animal welfare. However, considering that animal responses to heat are complex, future models should include several environmental and physiological factors, such as wind, solar radiation, and body temperature measured with wearable or contact-free sensors. Integrating these data into automated systems could enable continuous monitoring and support timely interventions, such as nutritional adjustments or cooling strategies. Overall, combining climate adaptation, welfare management, and advanced digital tools offers a pathway toward more ethical, sustainable, and resilient livestock production systems.In recent years, animal welfare has become a high priority in livestock production systems owing to the pressure to balance environmental sustainability, productivity, and ethics as demand continues to grow. This review presents the latest advances in small ruminant welfare, with emphasis on the effects of climate change, the main new innovative managerial and husbandry methods, and the use of precision livestock farming (PLF) technologies. In the first part, this review will examine how climate change is already re-shaping environmental and physiological conditions for farmed sheep and goats, with rising heat stress and negative impacts on both productive and reproductive performance. Secondly, more recent advances in small ruminant management will be presented, including improved housing systems, nutritional strategies, and behavioral monitoring, aimed at enhancing animal resilience and performance. Finally, particular focus will be given to the use of PLF tools for assessing milk quality and monitoring animal welfare. Evidence suggests that real-time monitoring technologies and sensor systems can accurately capture physiological and production parameters and provide an early sign of stress or health issues. Overall, the findings suggest that an integrated approach, combining climate adaptation strategies, welfare management, and the integration of precision technologies can serve as a key driver toward more ethical, sustainable, and resilient livestock production systems.

The objectives are to review results and experiences from interdisciplinary research projects in Research Centre for the Management of Animal Production and Health (CEPROS) concerning scientific content, organisation, and collaboration. The Centre has been founded as a result of an agreement between four institutions: the Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences (DIAS), the Danish Veterinary Laboratory (DVL), the Danish Veterinary Institute for Virus Research (DVIV) and The Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University (KVL). CEPROS is a "research centre without walls" and is physically located as an integrated part of the four institutions named above. The Centre has close collaboration with the industry. The superior goals of the Centre are to co-ordinate fundamental and applied research and simultaneously integrate the veterinary and the production oriented livestock research within animal health and welfare, taking into consideration the production economics and reduced use of medication. The assignment of the Centre is to initiate and carry out research, aiming to investigate the influence of breeding and production systems on animal health and welfare as well as on production and product quality. The Centre has since 1997 established 16 interdisciplinary research projects dealing with cattle, pigs, poultry, or mink. The scientific content can be divided into three research clusters: A. Management of animal production and health in production systems, B: Pathogenesis of production diseases, and C. Animal health economics. In Cluster A, the physical environments of production systems have been investigated, broader definitions of the concept health have been established and used in identification of risk factors. Cluster B has investigated physiological, immunological and genetic mechanisms behind development of production diseases and how to apply this knowledge in disease prevention. The cluster in animal health economics has developed decision support tools for disease control in swine and cattle herds. The interdisciplinary research groups organised in a centre without walls are found very useful for dealing with complex issues. The initial phases in the projects may be long as it takes time for different researchers to define common goals and identify methods. The individual researcher must get some insight in other disciplines without loosing his/her own area of expertise. In order to reach a synthesis of the different parts of a project, it is important that the project is well organised and there is participation of researchers with both specialised insight and researchers with a more broad insight in the problems. It is also important that the integration process is balanced, and not too many research disciplines are included in the same project.

My pigs are ok, why change? – animal welfare accounts of pig farmers

Review of the effectiveness of axis II animal welfare measures - first evidence from the Animal health and welfare management (AHWM) programme in Scotland

Simple SummaryThe Five Domains Model is a focusing device to facilitate systematic, structured, comprehensive and coherent assessment of animal welfare; it is not a definition of animal welfare, nor is it intended to be an accurate representation of body structure and function. The purpose of each of the five domains is to draw attention to areas that are relevant to both animal welfare assessment and management. This paper begins by briefly describing the major features of the Model and the operational interactions between the five domains, and then it details seven interacting applications of the Model. These underlie its utility and increasing application to welfare assessment and management in diverse animal use sectors.In accord with contemporary animal welfare science understanding, the Five Domains Model has a significant focus on subjective experiences, known as affects, which collectively contribute to an animal’s overall welfare state. Operationally, the focus of the Model is on the presence or absence of various internal physical/functional states and external circumstances that give rise to welfare-relevant negative and/or positive mental experiences, i.e., affects. The internal states and external circumstances of animals are evaluated systematically by referring to each of the first four domains of the Model, designated “Nutrition”, “Environment”, “Health” and “Behaviour”. Then affects, considered carefully and cautiously to be generated by factors in these domains, are accumulated into the fifth domain, designated “Mental State”. The scientific foundations of this operational procedure, published in detail elsewhere, are described briefly here, and then seven key ways the Model may be applied to the assessment and management of animal welfare are considered. These applications have the following beneficial objectives—they (1) specify key general foci for animal welfare management; (2) highlight the foundations of specific welfare management objectives; (3) identify previously unrecognised features of poor and good welfare; (4) enable monitoring of responses to specific welfare-focused remedial interventions and/or maintenance activities; (5) facilitate qualitative grading of particular features of welfare compromise and/or enhancement; (6) enable both prospective and retrospective animal welfare assessments to be conducted; and, (7) provide adjunct information to support consideration of quality of life evaluations in the context of end-of-life decisions. However, also noted is the importance of not overstating what utilisation of the Model can achieve.