Document type: scientific synthesis published in Animals
Authors: Ana María Herrera, Emilia Ponce, Robert Emilio Mora-Luna
Abstract in French (translation): Research on cattle feeding and nutrition from an animal welfare perspective: a bibliometric analysis
Research on cattle feedingand nutritionis increasingly incorporating animal welfareconsiderations in response to evolving scientific, societal, and production challenges. This study aimed to characterize the global scientific landscape on this topic through a comprehensive bibliometric analysis. A structured methodological framework was applied using the Web of Science database, covering the period from 2009 to 2025 and limited to literature published in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. The analysis was conducted in five stages: research design, data collection, analysis, visualization, and interpretation, using a broad search strategy that combined terms related to cattle production, nutrition, feeding, health, stress, and welfare. Bibliometric indicators and scientific mapping techniques were implemented using the Bibliometrix package in R (Biblioshiny), including collaboration network analysis, keyword co-occurrence, thematic evolution, and Bradford’s Law to identify leading journals. A total of 424 documents were analyzed. The results showed sustained growth in scientific output, particularly since 2016, indicating a consolidation of the field. Scientific output was concentrated in a limited number of countries, institutions, and journals, supported by increasingly interconnected collaboration networks. Thematic trends revealed a shift toward integrative approaches linking nutrition to stress, health, and productivity, positioning nutrition as a key tool for improving well-being and efficiency, although behavioral and socioeconomic aspects remain underrepresented.
Preview:
Within the framework of the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the Ministry of Agriculture, Agri-food and Food Sovereignty (MAAFS) commissioned an evaluation of the impact of the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP) on animal welfare in France [...] This evaluation was conducted from a thematic perspective focusing on animal welfare and covers the years 2023 and 2024, corresponding to the first two effective years of programme implementation. The evaluation work makes it possible to analyse the contribution of CAP interventions to animal welfare, as well as their coherence and complementarity with other relevant measures. The evaluation was carried out over a 12-month period (January 2025-January 2026) and structured into three phases: the scoping phase (January-March 2025), the data collection and analysis phase (April-September 2025), and the finalisation and recommendations phase (October 2025-January 2026). [...] Research on cattle feeding and nutrition has increasingly integrated animal welfare considerations in response to evolving scientific, societal, and production challenges. This study aimed to characterise the global scientific landscape on this topic through a comprehensive bibliometric analysis. A structured methodological framework was applied using the Web of Science database, covering the period from 2009 to 2025, limited to literature published in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. The analysis followed five stages: research design, data collection, analysis, visualisation, and interpretation, using a broad search strategy combining terms related to cattle production, nutrition, feeding, health, stress, and welfare. Bibliometric indicators and science mapping techniques were implemented using the Bibliometrix package in R (Biblioshiny), including collaboration network analysis, keyword co-occurrence, thematic evolution, and Bradford’s Law to identify core journals. In total, 424 documents were analysed. The results showed sustained growth in scientific production, particularly from 2016 onwards, indicating consolidation of the field. Output was concentrated in a limited number of countries, institutions, and journals, supported by increasingly interconnected collaboration networks. Thematic trends revealed a shift towards integrative approaches linking nutrition with stress, health, and productivity, positioning nutrition as a key tool to enhance welfare and efficiency, although behavioural and socio-economic aspects remain underrepresented.
