Effects of Transportation Distance, Slaughter Age, and Seasonal Factors on Total Losses in Broiler Chickens

Abstract

This study aimed at determining the total losses associated with the season, transportation distance, and slaughter age during the transportation of broilers from poultry farms to slaughterhouses in Turkey. All data and parameters were statistically analyzed and the change in total loss during transportation was evaluated by two-way analysis of variance to determine which factors or variables affect this change. Total transportation losses were compared among the four seasons of the year, two slaughter ages (younger broiler, 31-39 days of age; older broilers 40-46 days of age) and three distance ranges (short, ≤50 km; medium, 51-150 km; and long, ≥151 km). Total losses of 259.40 g, 307.35 g, and 350.14 g were determined for short, medium and long distances, respectively, indicating that losses increased with transportation distance (p<0.05). Broilers slaughtered at a younger age presented lower total losses than those slaughtered at an older age (p<0.05). When seasons were evaluated, the highest total loss was determined in the summer, which was not statistically different from that calculated for autumn, whereas total transportation losses in spring and winter were found relatively lower. The study showed longdistance transportation in the winter considerably increased total losses to levels similar to those obtained in the summer.

Effect of transportation distances, seasons and crate microclimate on broiler chicken production losses

“…Aral et al [57] analyzed 846 broiler loads in Turkey and observed mortality exceeding the recommended limits for all treatments evaluated, with an average of 0.29% for the group from 0-120 minutes, 0.38% from 121 to 240 minutes and 0.40% from 241 to 360 minutes. These data confirmed that the longer the transport distance and duration were, the lower the viability of broilers recorded upon arrival at the slaughterhouse [15,58].…”

“…The consequences of microclimatic factors are almost always described as a function of broiler performance at slaughter, such as carcass yield (quantity of meat) [14,15] and carcass quality (e.g., presence of bruises) [16]. However, with a focus on animal welfare, these analyses must also consider and evaluate the degree of compromise of the thermal comfort of broiler chickens during transportation [17,18].…”

“…Carcass bruises can occur during broiler catching or during transport, when the birds are exposed to social changes (such as mixing chickens with different groups from those established during the rearing period) [24,25] and to microclimatic factors that culminate in the crowding of birds in the transport crates [26]. Therefore, transport distance and duration as well as climatic conditions during transport can interfere with broiler welfare and behavior [27] and, ultimately, with their performance [15,28].…”

The Need for a Convergence of Agricultural/Laboratory and Zoo-based Approaches to Animal Welfare

“…Research has been concerned with the welfare implications of transportation on a variety of species including cattle (Teke, 2013), sheep (Parrott et al, 1999;Messori et al, 2015), goats (Alcalde et al, 2017), pigs (von Borell & Schäffer, 2005), rabbits (De la Fuente et al, 2007), chickens (Arikan et al, 2017), and turkeys (Wein et al, 2017). Additionally, the housing and health of animals has been extensively researched, for example perch type and provision for broiler chickens (Bailie et al, 2018), flooring type and housing systems for dairy cattle (Fjeldaas et al, 2011, Grosso et al, 2016, flooring type and presence or absence of bedding/substrate for pigs (Kallio et al, 2018) and indoor versus outdoor housing systems for goats (Grosso et al, 2016).…”

Influence of Long-Distance Transportation Under Various Crating Densities on Broiler Meat Quality During Hot and Humid Weather

“…High ambient temperature coupled with high humidity not only reduces growth performance but also threatens the well-being of broilers during their journey towards abattoirs ( Aldridge et al , 2019 ). Temperature and humidity variations during transportation can cause high mortalities ( Arikan et al , 2017 ), oxidative damage to muscles ( Estévez, 2015 ), and can also reduce physical appearance and functional characteristics of meat by inducing protein denaturation, pale color, and drip loss ( Wilhelm and Maganhini, 2010 ; Xing et al , 2015 ). The extent of deterioration during transportation depends on the microclimate of the vehicle compared to the direct effect of the ambient environment ( Simões et al , 2009 ).…”