Exploring the relationship between whole carcass condemnations and farm animal welfare: A rapid scoping review

Whole carcass condemnation data is regularly collected at abattoirs in some regions and presents a potential data source for animal welfare surveillance. This rapid scoping review aimed to characterize the body of research that has used condemnation data from abattoirs to investigate relationships between whole carcass condemnations and animal welfare, and identify gaps in the literature, with the secondary aim of considering the potential for condemnation data to be used in an animal welfare surveillance system. Peer-reviewed literature was searched using Scopus, and grey literature was searched using Google search. Following the screening process, 53 peer-reviewed records were identified. No grey literature records were identified. General study characteristics and data on the relationships (including associations and lack thereof) between animal welfare variables (which were categorized according to the following animal welfare factors: feeding, housing, health, behaviour, transport, and slaughter) and whole carcass condemnation reasons were extracted. We found that most research on this topic has been conducted in Europe (n = 41/53) and has focused on poultry (n = 29/53), particularly on broiler chickens (n = 21/53). In addition, most existing research focuses on understanding the relationship between on-farm health-related animal welfare factors and whole carcass condemnations, rather than other factors such as those related to feeding, housing, and behaviour, or during the transport and slaughter phases of the production chain. Gaps in the literature include research on cattle and small ruminants, and research on non-health-related animal welfare factors and how they relate to whole carcass condemnations. Overall, we found that condemnation data is a valuable secondary data source that can allow for the monitoring of large numbers of animals over long periods, and can contribute to animal welfare surveillance systems.