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Analysis of the Broiler Chicken Dead-on-Arrival (DOA) Rate in Relation to Normal Transport Conditions in Practice in Germany
1
WING (Science and Innovation for Sustainable Poultry Production), University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, 49456 Bakum, Germany
2
Institute for Animal Nutrition, University of Veterinary Medicine, Foundation, 30173 Hannover, Germany
3
Institute for Animal Hygiene, Animal Welfare and Farm Animal Behavior, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, 30173 Hannover, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Animals 2024, 14(13), 1947; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14131947 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 12 June 2024
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Revised: 27 June 2024
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Accepted: 30 June 2024
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Published: 30 June 2024
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Stress and Welfare during Transport and Slaughtering)
Simple Summary
The dead-on-arrival (DOA) rate is a good indicator of the quality of broiler chicken transport. This evaluation investigated factors that might have an influence on the DOA rate. Therefore, data from the transport of broilers in Germany between January 2022 and May 2023 were analyzed. The results showed no influence on the DOA rate of the amount of animals per transport, the duration and the distance of the transport, the stocking density, and the average daily temperature. Transport between 11:00 and 17:00 and in fall tended to have a higher DOA rate.
Abstract
In total, around 631 million broilers were slaughtered in Germany in 2022. This evaluation included data of approx. 198 million broilers of different ages and breeds that were transported in Germany in 2022 (31% of all cases of broiler chicken transport in 2022). The aim of this study was to analyze German broiler chicken transport (n = 14,054) to the slaughterhouse between January 2022 and May 2023 with regard to the dead-on-arrival (DOA) rate and the possible influencing factors. Therefore, the relation between the total amount of animals per transport, the duration and distance of the transport, the planned stocking density in the transport cages, the average daily temperature and time of day and season of the transport as well as the DOA rate were statistically evaluated. The results showed a mean DOA rate of 0.09% (SD 0.09). Transport conducted at midday (11:00 to 17:00) showed higher DOA rates (p < 0.05) than transport at other times (day split into 6 h intervals). The highest mean DOA rate (0.10%) was found in the fall, followed by the winter, while transport in the spring and summer resulted in the lowest DOA rate (p < 0.05). All in all, the relatively low DOA rate (%) in Germany indicates the good standard of their broiler transport compared to available data from research in other European countries.
Keywords:
slaughterhouse; broiler; transport; DOA; influencing factors; duration; distance; temperature
