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National Beef Quality Audit-2022: Transportation, mobility, live cattle, and hide assessments to determine producer-related defects that affect animal welfare and the value of market cows and bulls at processing facilities.
- Source :
-
Translational animal science [Transl Anim Sci] 2024 Mar 11; Vol. 8, pp. txae033. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Mar 11 (Print Publication: 2024). - Publication Year :
- 2024
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Abstract
- The National Beef Quality Audit (NBQA)-2022 serves as a benchmark of the current market cow and bull sectors of the U.S. beef industry and allows comparison to previous audits as a method of monitoring industry progress. From September 2021 through May 2022, livestock trailers ( n = 125), live animals ( n = 5,430), and post-slaughter hide-on animals ( n = 6,674) were surveyed at 20 commercial beef processing facilities across the U.S. Cattle were transported in a variety of trailer types for an average distance of 490.6 km and a mean transport time of 6.3 h. During transit, cattle averaged 2.3 m <superscript>2</superscript> of trailer space per animal indicating sufficient space was provided according to industry guidelines. Of all trailers surveyed, 55.3% transported cattle from an auction barn to a processing facility. When surveyed, 63.6% of all truck drivers reported to be Beef Quality Assurance certified. The majority (77.0%) of cattle were sound when evaluated for mobility. Mean body condition scores (9-point scale) for beef cows and bulls were 3.8 and 4.4, respectively, whereas mean body condition scores (5-point scale) for dairy cows and bulls were 2.3 and 2.6, respectively. Of the cattle surveyed, 45.1% had no visible live animal defects, and 37.9% had only a single defect. Of defects present in cows, 64.6% were attributed to an udder problem. Full udders were observed in 47.5% of all cows. Nearly all cattle were free of visible abscesses and knots (97.9% and 98.2%, respectively). No horns were observed in 89.4% of all cattle surveyed. Beef cattle were predominantly black-hided (68.9% and 67.4% of cows and bulls, respectively). Holstein was the predominant dairy animal observed and accounted for 85.7% of the cows and 98.0% of the bulls. Only 3.1% of all animals had no form of identification. Findings from the NBQA-2022 show improvements within the industry and identify areas that require continued education and research to improve market cow and bull welfare and beef quality.<br />Competing Interests: There are no known conflicts of interest by any of the authors.<br /> (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Society of Animal Science.)
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 2573-2102
- Volume :
- 8
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Translational animal science
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 38616995
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1093/tas/txae033