Abstract Background Scales are linear combinations of variables with coefficients that add up to zero and have a similar meaning to “contrast” in the analysis of variance. Scales are necessary in order to incorporate genomic information into relationship matrices for ge...

By-products like sawdust and straw are applied in compost bedded-pack barns (CBP) for cattle. These materials, which are gradually mixed with excreta and undergo a composting process, serve as a lying bed for the cattle. This study aims to assess the perception of consu...

The UK livestock industry urgently needs to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to contribute to ambitious climate change policy commitments. Achieving this requires an improved understanding of emission sources across a range of production systems to lower the burden...

Given the increasing complexity of the agro-food sector, the analysis of financial performance alone may not be sufficient to assess the economic sustainability of farmers. This paper presents a practical method to measure the performance of farm businesses by combining...

Methane is a major constituent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ruminants, and mitigation strategies are needed to alleviate this negative environmental impact while maintaining the environmental and other benefits of grazing systems. Forages containing plant-spec...

Red dairy breeds are a valuable cultural and historical asset, and often a source of unique genetic diversity. However, they have difficulties competing with other, more productive, dairy breeds. Improving competitiveness of Red dairy breeds, by accelerating their genet...

From a general structural perspective, a mucosal tissue is constituted by two main matrices: the tissue and the secreted mucus. Jointly, they fulfill a wide range of functions including the protection of the epithelial layer. In this study, we simultaneously analyzed th...

Simple Summary Painful castration of male piglets to avoid boar taint can potentially be replaced by three more ethical alternatives: using pain relief during and after castration, raising entire males, and administering vaccines. To ensure that pigs and pig products ca...

Abstract Background In commercial fish, dominance effects could be exploited by predicting production abilities of the offspring that would be generated by different mating pairs and choosing those pairs that maximise the average offspring phenotype. Consequently, matin...

Simple Summary Given the decrease in red meat consumption in the last decade, it is crucial for red meat producers to understand consumer preferences. This international study analyses the European consumer preferences for red meat (beef, lamb and goat) in seven countri...