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In the Italian market, voluntary certifications implying higher levels of animal welfare generally fall into wider production schemes. Despite of the results of EU surveys indicating that about 50% of Italian consumers can easily identify and find animal-friendly products, they still are distributed scarcely or discontinuously in the main retail chains. To assess the apparent contradiction between the intricate information consumers receive from labels and their declared awareness about animal welfare, a survey was conducted in Emilia Romagna region on 355 Italian consumers (face-to-face interviews based on a structured, semi-close-ended questionnaire). Overall, consumers showed a low degree of knowledge about animal welfare attributes, animal farming conditions and animal protection policies (about 30% of correct answers), and a low level of awareness of the effects of their purchasing choices on the welfare of farmed animals (22%). The respondents also showed difficulties in identifying animal-friendly products and often confused them with other certified foods, having sometimes a weak connection (or none at all) to animal welfare (e.g., Protected Designation of Origin products). However, most consumers declared to be ready to pay a premium price in name of animal welfare. In conclusion, a labelling system for the welfare content of animal-derived foods is confirmed to be an effective strategy to compensate the efforts of farmers in improving animal welfare, provided that the information given is clear and able to fill the substantial lack of consumer knowledge.

Two experimental trials were carried out in order to test the effectiveness of different environmental enrichments in improving the welfare of weaned pigs. A total of 120 undocked piglets was used. In trial one, group C1 received a metal chain and group WL a wooden log mounted on a frame. In trial two, the enrichments proposed were a hanging chain (group C2), an edible block (group ED) and a wooden briquette (group WB) mounted on a frame. The effectiveness of the enrichments was assessed in terms of animal behaviour, cortisol from bristles, hematologic and hematic profiles, cutaneous (skin and tail) lesions. Growth parameters were also recorded. Although some differences were detected in growth parameters in trial 1 (with C1 group having better productive outcomes than WL group) and some minor differences were observed in animal behaviour in both trials, the overall welfare status did not differ among the experimental groups. On the other hand, no welfare issues emerged in groups C1 and C2, receiving the enrichment device which is generally believed to be scarcely attractive, i.e. the hanging chain. We can therefore conclude that, if no managerial errors are made (floor space availability, feed inadequacy, group stability, microclimate, illumination), under the tested experimental conditions, hanging chains can provide a sufficient environmental enrichment for undocked piglets, even when compared to more attractive enrichments (e.g. an edible block).

This study aimed at identifying possible pre-slaughter indicators and/or indexes to be used to predict pig stress response and meat quality variation. Data were collected on 44 shipments (loads) of Italian heavy pigs. For each shipment, several pre-slaughter parameters were recorded on farm, during transport, and at the slaughterhouse. Blood and meat samples were taken from 10 pigs from every of the 44 loads included in the study (N = 440). Blood samples were used to assess cortisol and creatine kinase levels, whereas meat samples were used to assess meat quality (pH, instrumental color, tenderness, water-holding capacity, and sensory analysis). Cluster analysis of blood parameters allowed the categorization of the shipments into two main clusters: Lower Stress (LS) and Higher Stress (HS). The variables/indexes statistically differing between the two clusters were: average vehicle speed during transport, welfare index at slaughter (i.e., “slaughter score”), overall transport and slaughter welfare index (TSWI), distance travelled, and behaviors (slips, falls, overlaps) during unloading, which appeared to be the best descriptors of the welfare conditions experienced by Italian heavy pigs during pre-slaughter handling. No consistent effects of the stress level experienced on meat quality was detected, which warrants the need for further studies conducted under more variable pre-slaughter conditions, with the aim of simplifying and improving the TSWI.