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The use of antimicrobials is beneficial for livestock health; however, their overuse and misuse may increase resistance to these compounds. Thus, the aim of the present study was the phenotypic and molecular examination of the presence of Escherichia coli antibiotic-resistant strains in broiler and laying hen farms. The resistance of E. coli strains was examined against various antibiotics, including several families of compounds such as penicillin class medications (ampicillin), cephalosporins (cefotaxime, cefoxitin, cefpodoxime and ceftazidime), sulfonamides (co-trimoxazole), quinolones (enrofloxacin and nalidixic acid), aminoglycosides (gentamicin), β-lactams (imipenem), aminoglycoside (streptomycin), and polymyxin (colistin). In total, 106 strains were investigated, sampled during the years 2016–2019 from 91 poultry farms, including 75 broiler farms and 16 laying hen farms, originating from three Regional Units in Greece. The examined isolates revealed the highest resistance rates to sulfamethoxazole (81.1%), nalidixic acid (73.6%), tetracyclin (70.8%), and streptomycin (70.8%). On the other hand, the resistance of the isolates to third generation cephalosporins was found to be at lower levels for ceftazidime (2.8%), ceftriaxone (3.7%) cefoxitin (4.7%), and cefotaxime (4.7%). Phenotypic tests showed that 13.6% and 10.2% of the isolates produced ESBL, while 2.7% and 1% produced AmpC b-lactamase, for broiler and laying hens, respectively. The prevalence of the mcr-1 gene was found to be 22.7%, detected only in broiler isolates. Based on our results, E. coli antibiotic resistance represents a critical control point in poultry production that, apart from farm animals, may affect public health as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of grape pomace supplementation on quality attributes (colour, oxidative stability, microbiological status, sensory quality) in chicken meat was investigated. Broilers were fed on diets containing either 2.5, 5 or 10 g of ground dried grape pomace per kg feed for 42 days. Colour changes during storage and eating quality of breast muscle were assessed. Microbial growth and lipid oxidation were determined in breast and thigh meat during refrigerated storage. Grape pomace supplementation did not affect muscle colour lightness and yellowness. Inclusion of grape pomace in the diet affected redness and resulted in paler meat. Inclusion of grape pomace in the diet did not affect lipid oxidation levels in breast and thigh muscle during storage. On the basis of microbiological data, there was not neither a clear nor a consistent effect of grape pomace supplementation on poultry meat microbiological status. Inclusion of grape pomace in broiler diets did not affect the eating quality of breast muscle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to determine the effect of husbandry system and season on the grass intake and egg quality in laying hens considering that characteristics of organic eggs obtained in a system with no grass in the external area are similar conventional ones. RESULTS Three hundred and sixty Ancona hens were randomly assigned to three groups: a control group (C), with the hens kept in cages under standard housing conditions; the organic group (O), with the hens kept under an organic production system (4 m2 per hen) and the organic-plus group ( OP), with the hens maintained under organic conditions but with a larger grass paddock availability (10 m2 per hen). The estimated intake of forage, carotenoids and flavonoids of the OP hens was very high as the amounts deposited in eggs, mainly in the spring season. The fatty acid composition of the yolk was significantly affected by pasture. The OP eggs showed lower concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids ( PUFA) n-6 and a higher percentage of PUFA n-3. CONCLUSIONS The results showed that the grass intake was largely affected by the husbandry system and highlighted the seasonal effect of grass availability on the nutritional quality of eggs produced in organic systems. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper various welfare aspects of long distance transport of animal are introduced. Scientific evidence is presented together with ethical and public concerns, as well as enforcement problems with examples from current practice and research. The on-going project on 'Renovation and promoting high quality control posts in the European Union' is presented as it foresees a significant improvement of the equipment as well as the management of 12 Control Posts (CPs) located at the cross roads of important flows of animals transported over long journeys in the EU. The aim is to conclude with a model to assure quality and welfare during all phases of long distance transport and mainly when animals are uploaded and housed at a control post. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the paper was to investigate the influence some factors on the consumers' opinion regarding the animal welfare labelling of animal products. The analysed question was: "When purchasing eggs, meat or milk can you easily identify from the label those products sourced from animal welfare friendly production systems?" Respondents chosen only one answer out of the five offered: yes, most of the time; yes, some of the time; no, very rarely; no, never; and don't know. Thirty three percent of females considered they could find sometime information regarding the animal welfare on the labels, while males considered that this information could be found very rarely. Up to 55 years of age, 50% of the consumers consider that the labels do not contain the information about animal welfare, while after this age most of consumers consider they found this information on the labels. Over 50% of Orthodox and Roman Catholic responders considered that the information on animal welfare on the labels was found some of the time or very rarely. Respondents, irrespective of their living area or monthly income, considered that there is scarce information regarding animal welfare on the labels. Internet access significantly influenced the consumers regarding the availability of the information on the labels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper was to measure the main aspects that characterize the feeding behaviour of eighteen months old heifers using three different feeding space allowances (0.4, 0.6 and 0.84 m feeding space per heifer). During the experiments the following feeding behaviour aspects were determined: number of feeding periods, the length of one feeding period and the total length of feeding periods. When a feeding space of 0.6 m per heifer was used the total length of feeding periods in 24 hours had a value of 641 minutes, significantly bigger (p<0.05) than when feeding space was 0.4 or 0.84 m per heifer (543 and 453 minutes). There were significant differences (p<0.05) for total time spent feeding by calves between the second experimental variant (0.6 m feeding space per heifer) and the first (0.4 m feeding space per heifer) and the third experimental variant (0.84 m feeding space per heifer) during the afternoon and during the night. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]