Auditing animal welfare and making practical improvements in beef-, pork- and sheep-slaughter plants.

The article discusses animal welfare audits and offers recommendations for making improvements in beef, pork and sheep-slaughter plants. Particular focus is given to 2010 audit data from two restaurant companies. The data indicated that 95% or more of the cattle in all 30 North American plants of the companies were insensible with a single shot from a captive-bolt gun. Some measures implemented by plant managers to improve welfare include improving stunner maintenance and employee training.