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Animal Welfare, Food Safety and Environmental Sustainability: Farm Animals Productions...
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Animal Welfare, Food Safety and Environmental Sustainability: Farm Animals Productions in a “One-Health” Perspective

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Welfare".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2022) | Viewed by 19828

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Luigi Iannetti

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise “G. Caporale”, 64100 Teramo, Italy
Interests: predictive microbiology; challenge test; shelf-life studies; animal welfare; food hygiene
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Michele Podaliri Vulpiani

E-Mail
Guest Editor
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale, Teramo, Italy

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Animal welfare is being increasingly recognized as a crucial issue in the context of the food production chain. The production of food of animal origin has often focused on quantities, price and competitiveness, and expression of an intensive approach to farming, with repercussions not only for the quality of life of the animals, but also with harmful effects on the environment and on the quality and safety of food. A “One-Health” approach to animal production should take into consideration that humans, animals, and the environment are tightly interlinked: intensive farming practices could be associated with both environmental damage and poor animal welfare, and there is increasing scientific evidence demonstrating the negative effects of stress on meat quality and their connection with contamination by microorganisms responsible for food-borne diseases. Moreover, antimicrobial resistance, which represents a primary cause of death in human and animal populations, could be linked to the quality of farm animal management.

This Special Issue invites original research papers that study the connections between animal welfare and other factors encompassed in a “One-Health” perspective, including environmental sustainability, food quality and safety, and antimicrobial resistance. Topics of interest include investigations of the impact of different farming methods, including organic, on the abovementioned factors. Review papers that investigate the state-of-the art in this field are also welcomed.

Dr. Luigi Iannetti
Dr. Michele Podaliri Vulpiani
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • animal welfare
  • food safety
  • sustainability
  • antimicrobial resistance
  • environment
  • One-Health
  • farm animals
  • stress
  • meat quality

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 2453 KiB  
Article
Animal Welfare and Food Safety When Slaughtering Cattle Using the Gunshot Method
by Jan Hultgren, Katrin J. Schiffer, Jakub Babol and Charlotte Berg
Animals 2022, 12(4), 492; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12040492 - 16 Feb 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 6523
Abstract
Transporting cattle from farm to slaughterhouse is often stressful for the animal, which can impair the meat quality. With the gunshot method, the animal is stunned with a rifle shot while together with familiar herd members in their home environment, exsanguinated and transported [...] Read more.
Transporting cattle from farm to slaughterhouse is often stressful for the animal, which can impair the meat quality. With the gunshot method, the animal is stunned with a rifle shot while together with familiar herd members in their home environment, exsanguinated and transported to a nearby slaughterhouse. Aiming to assess the consequences for animal welfare and food safety, 20 Hereford steers aged 18–54 months were shot with .22 Magnum ammunition from an elevated position and distance of 6–12 m. Each time, only one out of four to seven animals in a 16 × 10 m corral was shot. Dressing was done on farm. Based on the animals’ behaviour and blood concentrations of cortisol, glucose and lactate, stress levels before shooting were low. Eleven animals were deeply stunned, the consciousness of seven others was ambiguous, and two were poorly stunned. Two animals were reshot. The bleed-out was satisfactory for all animals, and little or no faecal contamination was found on the carcasses. We conclude that the gunshot method is applicable to large beef steers while maintaining a satisfactory level of animal welfare and food safety, provided that the necessary conditions can be attained. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Welfare, Food Safety and Environmental Sustainability: Farm Animals Productions in a “One-Health” Perspective)
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11 pages, 787 KiB  
Article
Animal Welfare Assessment in Antibiotic-Free and Conventional Broiler Chicken
by Luigi Iannetti, Sara Romagnoli, Giuseppe Cotturone and Michele Podaliri Vulpiani
Animals 2021, 11(10), 2822; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11102822 - 27 Sep 2021
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2892
Abstract
The poultry sector is moving towards antibiotic-free production, both to challenge the increasing spread of the antibiotic resistance phenomenon and to meet market demands. This could negatively impact the health and welfare of the animals. In this study, the welfare of 14 batches [...] Read more.
The poultry sector is moving towards antibiotic-free production, both to challenge the increasing spread of the antibiotic resistance phenomenon and to meet market demands. This could negatively impact the health and welfare of the animals. In this study, the welfare of 14 batches of 41–47-day-old broilers raised by the same integrated company with and without antibiotics was assessed using the Welfare Quality® protocol. The total welfare score did not significantly differ between the two systems: the good-feeding principle was, on average, higher in the conventional batches, with statistical significance (t = −2.45; p = 0.024), while the other welfare principles (good housing, good health and appropriate behaviour) were slightly better in the antibiotic-free batches. Despite stocking densities averagely higher in the antibiotic-free batches, the absence of antibiotics did not seem to impact the good-health principle; in particular, hock burns, foot pad dermatitis and lameness were significantly less severe in the antibiotic-free batches (p < 0.0001, p = 0.018, p < 0.0001, respectively), which showed also a lower death rate (2.34% vs. 2.50%). Better management of antibiotic-free batches was reported, particularly concerning litter conditions. Further studies would be required to identify and standardise a set of managerial methodologies in order to improve the health of broilers raised without antibiotics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Welfare, Food Safety and Environmental Sustainability: Farm Animals Productions in a “One-Health” Perspective)
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13 pages, 307 KiB  
Article
Shade Modifies Behavioral and Physiological Responses of Low to Medium Production Dairy Cows at Pasture in an Integrated Crop-Livestock-Forest System
by Natani S. Reis, Isabel C. Ferreira, Lucas A. Mazocco, Ana Clara B. Souza, Gabriel A. S. Pinho, Álvaro M. da Fonseca Neto, Juaci V. Malaquias, Fernando A. Macena, Artur G. Muller, Carlos F. Martins, Luiz C. Balbino and Concepta M. McManus
Animals 2021, 11(8), 2411; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11082411 - 15 Aug 2021
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3426
Abstract
Under conditions of high temperature, humidity, and incidence of solar radiation, dairy cows use behavioral changes as a strategy to decrease the metabolic heat production at pasture. The objective of this study was to evaluate the behavioral and physiological responses of Gyr and [...] Read more.
Under conditions of high temperature, humidity, and incidence of solar radiation, dairy cows use behavioral changes as a strategy to decrease the metabolic heat production at pasture. The objective of this study was to evaluate the behavioral and physiological responses of Gyr and Girolando (5/8 Holstein 3/8 Gyr, and ½ Holstein ½ Gyr) dairy cows submitted to environments with and without shade. The experiment was conducted at Embrapa Cerrados (Technology Center for Dairy Zebu breeds—CTZL), Brasilia, Distrito Federal—Brazil, with 48 Gyr and Girolando cows total in the lactation group, with low to medium milk production, in full sun or shade with Eucalyptus urograndis (267 plants/ha−1). The physiological and behavioral characteristics evaluated were panting score, superficial temperature, and time spent grazing, ruminating, and lying down. Other traits included skin and coat thickness, hair diameter, density and length, and predominant coat color. In addition, body measurements, such as body length, the height of withers, chest circumference, and shin circumference, were measured. Shaded cows had 34% longer rumination times than cows in full sun (p = 0.01). With a temperature-humidity index ranging from 79 to 83, the rumination time was 1.7 times higher in cows under shade (p = 0.01) during a 24-h period of observation. There were no significant differences in the grazing time between the environments, but lying time was 23% longer in cows under the sun (p = 0.01). The panting score was not influenced by the environment (p = 0.17). Girolando cows had a 35% higher panting score than Gyr cows (p = 0.01) regardless of the environment. The panting score increased two and a half times during the afternoon compared with the morning (p = 0.01). The surface and rectal core temperatures had significant differences between treatments and time of the day. Body measurements were not different between cows in both environments, but there was a difference between breeds. The use of trees in pastures with a silvopastoral system for dairy zebu cows is indicated to improve grazing behavior, as well as time spent ruminating and lying down. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Welfare, Food Safety and Environmental Sustainability: Farm Animals Productions in a “One-Health” Perspective)
10 pages, 1180 KiB  
Article
The Influence of Broilers’ Body Weight on the Efficiency of Electrical Stunning and Meat Quality under Field Conditions
by Giorgio Smaldone, Stefano Capezzuto, Rosa Luisa Ambrosio, Maria Francesca Peruzy, Raffaele Marrone, Giacomo Peres and Aniello Anastasio
Animals 2021, 11(5), 1362; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11051362 - 11 May 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2649
Abstract
Water-bath stunning represents the most-applied stunning system in poultry slaughtering, but within the European Union, specific indications on electric parameters that should be used, such as voltage, are missing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of two commercially available [...] Read more.
Water-bath stunning represents the most-applied stunning system in poultry slaughtering, but within the European Union, specific indications on electric parameters that should be used, such as voltage, are missing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of two commercially available types of electrical equipment (A and B) on broilers with different live body weights and the influence of the tested parameters on meat quality. Experimental trials in a European Union-approved slaughterhouse were carried out using two different stunners. 6600 broilers, divided into three weight groups, were stunned applying different protocols based on the same current frequencies and intensity but different voltages. The state of unconsciousness (presence of corneal reflex and wings flapping) and post-mortem defects (pectoral hemorrhages and dark meat) were evaluated by blinded trained operators. The presence of corneal reflex and petechiae were the most reported consciousness signs and post-mortem injuries, respectively. Different weights played an important role within stunner A, registering statistical differences (p < 0.01) among groups. Considering injuries, an inverse relationship between body weight and lesions was found. The results highlighted the effectiveness of both stunning systems applying the best combination of electrical parameters considering the weight of the animal and ensuring its well-being. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Welfare, Food Safety and Environmental Sustainability: Farm Animals Productions in a “One-Health” Perspective)
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9 pages, 2518 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Microbiota Modulation in Poultry to Combat Infectious Diseases
by Laura Montoro-Dasi, Arantxa Villagra, María de Toro, María Teresa Pérez-Gracia, Santiago Vega and Clara Marin
Animals 2021, 11(3), 615; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11030615 - 26 Feb 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2589
Abstract
Poultry is one of the main agricultural sub-sectors worldwide. However, public concern regarding animal welfare and antimicrobial resistance has risen in recent years. Due to the influence of management practices on microbiota, it might be considered to evaluate poultry welfare and health. Therefore, [...] Read more.
Poultry is one of the main agricultural sub-sectors worldwide. However, public concern regarding animal welfare and antimicrobial resistance has risen in recent years. Due to the influence of management practices on microbiota, it might be considered to evaluate poultry welfare and health. Therefore, the objective of this research was to analyse the influence on microbiota balance of broilers under commercial and optimal farm conditions, using 16S rRNA sequencing analysis. The research was performed in two identical poultry houses (commercial vs. optimal). Results showed a higher level of microbiota complexity in the group reared under optimal farm conditions at the end of rearing. Regarding microbiota composition, Firmicutes was the dominant phylum during the entire growing period. However, the second most prevalent phylum was Proteobacteria at the arrival day, and Bacteroidetes from the mid-period onward in both groups. Moreover, the most predominant genera identified were Oscillospira, Ruminococcus, Bacteroides, and Coprococcus. In conclusion, it is necessary to optimize farm management as much as possible. Using gut microbiota diversity and composition as biomarkers of animal health could be an important tool for infectious disease control, with the aim of reducing the administration of antibiotics at field level. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Welfare, Food Safety and Environmental Sustainability: Farm Animals Productions in a “One-Health” Perspective)
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