Document type : Technical paper

The Science–Policy Interface on Farm Animal Welfare in the EU

Ciska De Ruyver, Frank Tuyttens

Published in 2025

A SCAR study analyzing barriers to knowledge transfer from research to European policy on farm animal welfare. The study makes recommendations for the strengthening of the science-policy interface, particularly in the areas of governance, funding, research, and knowledge transfer.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: All animals

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Use of Enrichment in Broilers

EURCAW-Poultry-SFA

Published in 2026

Protocole spécifique d’évaluation des enrichissements environnementaux chez les poulets de chair

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: Poultry

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Country Consultation on AH&W Priorities and Challenges

SCAR Animal Health & Welfare Collaborative Working Group

Published in 2026

Survey carried out for the SCAR AH&W Group, identifying Member States'  top animal health and welfare research priorities for 2025–2026 . Among priorities identified are a “One Health” approach, disease prevention, welfare indicators, livestock systems, transport, aquaculture, genomic tools, and the impacts of climate change.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal Categories: Fish, All Animals

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Conséquences des procédures douloureuses et stressantes chez les bovins

EURCAW Ruminants & Equines

Published in 2026

Fact sheet providing a detailed examination of painful and stressful procedures commonly performed on cattle (identification marking, dehorning or disbudding, tail docking, castration, and teat removal). It describes the biological context, legal requirements, and key points to check during inspections.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: Bovines

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Ensuring ethical beef production: A comprehensive risk assessment of animal welfare during transportation and slaughter processes

Piotr Janiszewski, Marco Misuraca, Egidia Costanzi, Beniamino Cenci Goga

Published in 2025

EFSA project seeking to produce an updated cattle handling pathway during transport and slaughter that would reduce stress, reliance on coercive devices and the risk of injury due to trama or falls. The project demonstrates how compliance with animal welfare standards can be harmonized with operational efficiency, safety, and product quality.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: Bovines

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Foie gras – A delicacy at the cost of suffering

Sophie Hild and Nikita Bachelard (2nd edition) based on J.-C. Nouët and T. Auffret Van Der Kemp (1st edition, 2006)

Published in 2019

Report condemning the production of foie gras based on force-feeding. Despite its commercial success and cultural roots in France, this practice is scientifically recognized as a source of illness and significant suffering, has no natural biological grounds, and is banned in several countries.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: Poultry

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The use of animal-based measures collected in slaughterhouses to monitor the level of welfare of Equidae in establishments: EFSA scientific NCPs Network exercise

European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), Marika Vitali, Giulia Cecchinato, Aitana López Baquero, Beatrice Benedetti, Denise Candiani, Michaela Hempen, Yves Van der Stede, Chiara Fabris

Published in 2025

Exercise carried out by EFSA's scientific network of national contact points to identify and prioritize animal-based measures collected at abattoirs to retrospectively monitor the welfare of equidae, to provide evidence for a future scientific opinion.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: Equines

The right fit: A decision tree to select a protocol for assessing the welfare of laying hens

Muhammad Fathin Hanif, Liesbeth G.W. Van Damme, Charlotte Vanden Hole, T. Bas Rodenburg, Vera Bavinck, Xavier Averós, Inma Estevez, Ali Agus, Frank A.M. Tuyttens

Published in 2025

Development of a decision tree to help members of the laying-hen industry to select the welfare assessment protocols that are best suited to their needs.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: Poultry

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Research and innovation perspectives: poultry welfare in 2050

Shawna L. Weimer, Elena Myhre, Anne-Marie Neeteson-van Nieuwenhoven, Rodolfo Arreaga, Kate Barger, Ruth C. Newberry, Katy J. Tarrant, Gregory S. Fraley

Published in 2025

Open letter, published in Poultry Science, presenting the key findings of global discussions led by the International Poultry Welfare Alliance (IPWA) on the future state of poultry welfare to 2050. Involving more than 200 participants, these discussions included housing and management, positive welfare measures, nutrition, artificial intelligence and the sustainability of production systems.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: Poultry

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Just like humans, many animals get more aggressive in the heat

Katarina Zimmer

Published in 2025

Article showing that high temperatures influence aggressive behavior in many species. From salamanders to fish and mammals, aggression increases when temperatures rise, as heat stimulates the metabolism and intensifies competition for resources.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: All animals

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