Breed(ing) Narratives: Visualizing Values in Industrial Farming

In this study, we consider how farmed animals, specifically pigs and chickens, are visualised in literature designed for circulation within animal production industries. The way breeding companies create and circulate images of industrial animals tells us a lot about their visions of what industrial animals are and how they believe animals should be treated. Drawing upon a wide range of material designed for circulation within animal production industries, from the 1880s to the 2010s, this paper examines how representations of pigs and chickens contribute to stories of perfection and advance ideals of power, race, gender, and progress. We demonstrate that visual representations of industrial animals have remained remarkably stable over time, testifying to the deep roots of human desires and assumptions about animals in capitalist societies. We argue that breed-standard images of pigs and chickens uphold complex and deeply imbricated value systems that extend beyond discourses centred on the animal body

(Re)connecting the food chain:Entangling cattle, farmers and consumers in the sale of raw milk

This paper deals with the following class of nonlocal Schr\"odinger equations $$\displaystyle (-\Delta)^s u + u = |u|^{p-1}u \ \ \text{in} \ \mathbb{R}^N, \quad \text{for} \ s\in (0,1).$$ We prove existence and symmetry results for the solutions $u$ in the fractional Sobolev space $H^s(\mathbb{R}^N)$. Our results are in clear accordance with those for the classical local counterpart, that is when $s=1$

Using economic and social data to improve veterinary vaccine development: Learning lessons from human vaccinology

The drivers of vaccine development are many and varied. They include, for example, recognition of the burden of a vaccine-targeted disease, prioritisation of the multiple problems associated with a disease, consideration of the differing socio-economic situations under which vaccines are used, the influence of advocacy groups, and assessment of the feasibility of large-scale vaccine manufacture and distribution. In the field of human health, data-driven development of vaccines is becoming increasingly common through the availability of reliable information on the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) and stringent evaluations of vaccination programmes utilising empirical data on costing and effectiveness, and standardised cost-effectiveness thresholds. The data generated from such analyses allow policymakers, implementing partners, industries and researchers to make decisions based on the best, and most contextually relevant, available evidence. In this paper, we wish to explore the current use of economic and social data for the development of veterinary vaccines. Through comparison with the development of human vaccines, we will look for opportunities in animal health sciences to better integrate socio-economic data and analyses into the process of veterinary vaccine selection, development, and field implementation. We believe that more robust animal health impact assessments could add value to veterinary vaccine development by improving resource allocation and animal disease management

Cattle helminth infections in England and Wales: an investigation into prevalence, risk factors, attitudes and impacts

Worldwide, there is an increasing demand for food, especially meat and milk. Alongside concerns around sustainability and other issues such as animal welfare, high expectations are put on livestock systems for an increased production and efficiency in order to meet such a demand. Helminth infections are ubiquitous on cattle farms and represent a growing concern for the industry around the world. In the UK, Ostertagia ostertagi and Fasciola hepatica are recognised as parasites of major importance in terms of their economic impact on cattle production and animal welfare. Rumen fluke is another strong candidate in the list of helminths which represent challenges for the sector in the UK. However, because helminth infections are mainly subclinical, their control is often very difficult. In this context, farmers generally adopt blanket treatment in young-stock to prevent or regain production losses due to these infections. This results in increasing problems of helminth resistance to available drugs, making such a practice unsustainable. Motivated by these concerns, several guidelines for best-practice on cattle helminth control have been published in the past few years. Nonetheless, farmers’ have been reluctant to adopt the recommendations put forward by these documents. Cattle helminths infections are influenced by the interplay of a wide range of factors. These include not only interactions between different species of parasites, but also climate conditions, management practices, availability of resources, and farmers’ attitudes, for which the role of comprehensive and reliable epidemiological information is key. An alternative to the use of cattle anthelmintic drugs is to avoid contamination of pasture to prevent the exposure of most susceptible cattle. The choice of diagnostic tools and the design of the studies are determinant for capturing the complexity of factors influencing helminth infections and control. However, basic epidemiological information on helminth infections in cattle in England and Wales is currently lacking, especially for O. ostertagi, F. hepatica and rumen fluke. Second, the relationship between economic losses and helminth infections remains to be clarified, particularly in the case of poly-infections and first lactation heifers. Third, previous studies informing potential alternatives (e.g. grazing management), suffer from limitations in terms of their scope and the adequacy of their recommendations. Finally, although being as relevant as epidemiological information, understanding what are the factors driving farmers’ decisions on cattle helminth control is a topic still poorly addressed in the literature. To address the issues above, this project was based on a mix-methods research (quantitative and qualitative methods) and a multidisciplinary framework that incorporates both veterinary epidemiology and sociology. The research analyses the cases of dairy and beef cattle in England and Wales by using longitudinal and cross-sectional studies, respectively. For dairy cattle, 43 farms (1,500 heifers) were studied. Data was collected and analysed in relation to the prevalence of O. ostertagi and F. hepatica; current practices in helminth control; demographics and management risk factors of young-stock helminth infections; impacts on milk production, reproduction and health performances in heifers; and farmers’ attitudes. As for beef cattle, data was collected for both single and poly-infections in 974 cattle (at slaughter), to support the analysis of the prevalence of O. ostertagi, F. hepatica and rumen fluke; demographic risk factors; and impacts on prime beef carcase performance. The main findings of this thesis are summarised below: Prevalence: the ubiquity of O. ostertagi and the significant presence of F. hepatica infections are confirmed; rumen fluke infections, most probably by C. daubneyi, can be considered as well-established in the UK; poly-infections by the three parasites are very common within the sample analysed; Risk factors: different types of grazing management practices can help with reducing dairy heifer exposure to O. ostertagi on pasture at specific times during their first years of grazing; Impact: the three parasites were significantly associated with low carcase performance in prime beef cattle; heifer exposure to O. ostertagi was significantly associated with lower milk production, reproduction and health performances; Farmers’ practices and attitudes: dairy farmers tend to overuse anthelmintic drugs on young-stock; they actively search and access information on cattle helminth infections and critically assess it in terms of management and business sustainability; farmers’ epistemology and contextual challenges should be taken into account while developing guidelines for helminth control. This thesis makes several contributions to veterinary and sociological studies of cattle helminth control. The different studies conducted shed light on a series of overlooked epidemiological and behavioural aspects that are critical for helminth control in the UK. Importantly, the thesis contributes to a better understanding of the complexity that is inherent to cattle helminth control. By considering both the epidemiology of the infections and broader societal and cultural factors, it offers a comprehensive analysis and a pioneer representation of how the system of cattle helminth control might operate in the UK. The results of this research are extremely valuable to veterinarians, farmers, experts, and policy-makers who all wish to develop and implement sustainable control of helminth infections in cattle

Re-thinking public health: Towards a new scientific logic of routine animal health care in European industrial farming

From Springer Nature via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: received 2020-11-03, accepted 2021-08-19, registration 2021-09-02, pub-electronic 2021-09-20, online 2021-09-20, collection 2021-12Publication status: PublishedAbstract: This study makes the case for a new scientific logic of routine animal health care in industrial farming in Europe. We argue that the social regime underpinning scientific research and development on chronic animal disease management (CADM) in Europe stifles innovation and sustains a productivist model of animal husbandry that facilitates and maintains chronic animal diseases rather than eliminating them. Drawing on documentary analysis and qualitative interviews, the study explores the science of CADM in the broiler, cattle and pig sectors of the European food industry. Our findings show that in these major sectors, research and development on CADM is largely orientated towards a logic of growth, profitability and control rather than a recognition of the interconnection between chronic animal diseases, the food industry, and people (especially consumers) as advocated by the One Health approach. The study contributes to the literature on medical humanities and science and technology studies within One Health and public health in two ways: First, we draw new focus towards chronic animal diseases that are non-transmissible to humans and argue that while these are not zoonoses, they are equally worthy of attention for managing the emergence of new pathogens and diseases. Second, we expand the conceptualisation of One Health to include chronic animal health conditions. Our argument is that public health as an outcome of the One Health approach should be a term of reference that applies to humans and nonhumans alike whether they be farmed animals, practitioners or consumers

A longitudinal study of gastrointestinal parasites in English dairy farms: practices and factors associated with first lactation heifer exposure to Ostertagia ostertagi on pasture

The gastrointestinal nematode Ostertagia ostertagi is an important cause of lost production, health, and welfare in cattle. Detailed records were obtained over a 5-yr period (2010–2015) by questionnaires and qualitative interviews to investigate the practices adopted by dairy farmers to control cattle helminth infections and the factors associated with heifer exposure to O. ostertagi on pasture. In total, 1,454 heifers' individual milk samples were collected over a 1-yr period (2014–2015) in 43 dairy farms in England and tested for O. ostertagi antibody by ELISA. Multilevel linear regression models were used to investigate the association between individual milk optical density ratio (ODR) against O. ostertagi and heifer management from birth to time of sampling. Farm and heifer median ODR against O. ostertagi were 0.98 (interquartile range = 0.76–1.02) and 0.64 (interquartile range = 0.42–0.84), respectively. The majority of heifers (88%) received an anthelmintic treatment before sampling in this study. After controlling for the effect of anthelmintic treatments, heifer individual milk ODR against O. ostertagi significantly increased with high stocking rate at first grazing and co-grazing with adult cows before calving. Conversely, heifer individual milk ODR against O. ostertagi significantly decreased when heifers had co-grazed with sheep and pasture grass had frequently been mowed. Overall, these results provide evidence to support targeting grazing management toward limiting the use of anthelmintics in dairy young stock to enable sustainable control of cattle helminth infections in England. However, to be accepted and adopted by farmers, these best practices would need to take into account farmers' perspectives and contextual challenges

Preventative services offered by veterinarians on sheep farms in England and Wales: opinions and drivers for proactive flock health planning

Recent independent UK government reports and studies have highlighted the importance, but lack, of flock health services provided by veterinarians. Qualitative interviews were analysed by thematic analysis to construct belief statements to understand veterinarians' opinions on preventative advice and drivers for current services to sheep farmers. A postal questionnaire was sent to 515 sheep practices registered with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeon (RCVS) in England and Wales in 2012 to gather quantitative data on these belief statements and to gather demographic information and current services provided by the veterinarian. Exploratory factor analysis with heuristic approaches was conducted on the respondents' belief statements to identify common factors of veterinarian beliefs. Three main factors were identified: motivation for proactiveness, perceived capability to offer preventative services and perceived opportunity to deliver these services. A beta regression model was built to identify the factors significantly associated with the time veterinarians spent in an advisory role. The relative proportion of time increased by 10% (1.01-1.19), 16% (1.03-1.30) and 29% (CI: 1.09-1.53) for each unit increase in score for factor 1 motivation, factor 2 capability and factor 3 opportunity respectively, indicating that these latent factors explained time veterinarians spent in an advisory role with sheep clients. There was a significant correlation between these factors suggesting influence of the associated beliefs between factors. This study provides insight into the nature and drivers of veterinarians' current behaviour and beliefs. These results could be further tested in behaviour intervention studies and help in designing efficient strategies aiming at promoting proactive health services offered by veterinarians on sheep farms in England and Wales